Rate My Professor Tanya Heikkila

Tanya Heikkila is a Professor in the School of Public Affairs at the University of Colorado Denver, where she directs the Master of Public Policy program and co-directs the Center for Policy and Democracy. Her research and teaching center on policy processes and environmental governance, with a particular emphasis on how conflict and collaboration emerge in these processes, the institutions that foster collective learning, and strategies to mitigate conflict. She has investigated these themes across diverse contexts, including interstate watersheds, the Everglades Restoration Program, urban sustainability initiatives, and unconventional oil and gas development. Heikkila currently leads an interdisciplinary research project on climate-resilient and equitable housing at CU Denver and serves as a member of California's Delta Independent Science Board. Prior academic appointments include Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs (2017-2021) and Associate Professor (2009-2016) at CU Denver's School of Public Affairs, Assistant Professor at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (2002-2009), Associate Director of the Columbia Water Center (2008-2009), and Post-Doctoral Fellow at Indiana University's Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis (2001-2002).

Heikkila holds a PhD in Management (2001) and MPA (1998) from the University of Arizona's School of Public Administration and Policy, and a BA in International Studies and Spanish (1992) from the University of Oregon's Clark Honors College. She has earned prestigious awards such as the American Political Science Association Public Policy Section’s Lowi Prize for best paper (2023), the Harold D. Lasswell Award for the best article in Policy Sciences (2012), the University of Colorado Denver Campus-wide Award for Excellence in Faculty Research (2013), multiple School of Public Affairs Excellence Awards in research (2018, 2013), teaching (2014), service and leadership (2021), and mentoring (2015, 2020), and earlier honors including the Best Article Award from the American Review of Public Administration (2004). Her influential publications include books like Learning for Environmental Governance: Insights for a More Adaptive Future (2024, with A.K. Gerlak), Making Policy in a Complex World (2019, with P. Cairney and M. Wood), The Effective Public Manager (Fifth Edition, 2013; Fourth Edition, 2008, with S. Cohen and W. Eimicke), Policy Debates on Hydraulic Fracturing (2016, co-edited), and Common Waters, Diverging Streams (2004, with W. Blomquist and E. Schlager). Highly cited articles encompass works on collective learning, policy process theories, and collaborative resource management, contributing substantially to advancements in public policy scholarship.