Rate My Professor Heather Smith

Dr. Heather Smith is a Senior Lecturer in Water Governance within the Cranfield Water Science Institute at Cranfield University, School of Water, Energy and Environment. She holds a BSc in Environmental and Conservation Science from the University of Alberta, Canada. After her undergraduate degree, she worked as a researcher for a Canadian NGO, engaging in multi-stakeholder processes for developing and implementing watershed planning in Ontario. She then earned an MSc in Water Science, Policy and Management from the University of Oxford, studying glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) and strategies to reduce vulnerability in remote Nepalese mountain communities. Heather completed her PhD at the University of Aberdeen, where her research examined the Scottish land use planning system and recommendations to enhance its relationship with river basin management planning under the European Water Framework Directive. She joined Cranfield University in August 2011.

Dr. Smith's research investigates the governance, institutions, and societal dimensions of the water and wastewater services sector, with a focus on the relationship between governance and resilience. Her recent projects explore emerging technologies and approaches, such as water recycling and resource recovery, their integration into existing governance frameworks, and end-user perceptions. Adopting an interdisciplinary lens bridging social science and engineering, her scholarship has appeared in prominent outlets including Nature Water, Water Policy, Science of the Total Environment, Journal of Environmental Management, and Water Research. Key publications encompass 'Time to revise the terminology we use to regulate water management practices' (Nature Water, 2024, with Paul Jeffrey and Francesca Hassard), 'Enabling the uptake of circular water solutions' (Water Policy, 2024, with Jan Frijns and Christina Makropoulos), 'An exploration of customers’ satisfaction with water and wastewater services in the UK' (Water Economics and Policy, 2023, with Kang Tian, Daniel Goodwin, and Elaine Gallagher), 'Stakeholder evaluations of risk interventions for non-potable recycled water schemes: a case study' (Science of the Total Environment, 2019, with Daniel Goodwin, Marc Raffin, and Paul Jeffrey), and 'Public responses to water reuse - Understanding the evidence' (Journal of Environmental Management, 2017, with Sarah Brouwer, Paul Jeffrey, and Jan Frijns). Her contributions advance understanding of sustainable water management practices.