Sally M. Benson
Professor, Energy Resources Engineering
Co-Director, Precourt Institute for Energy
Director, Global Climate & Energy Project, Stanford University

Benson, who joined Stanford University in 2007, is the co-director of Stanford’s Precourt Institute for Energy and the director of the Global Climate and Energy Project. A professor in the Department of Energy Resources Engineering in the School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences, she studies technologies and pathways to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Prior to joining GCEP, Benson was a staff scientist in the Earth Sciences Division at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. In 2004, she completed a four-year term as deputy director of operations at the lab. Benson also served as division director for earth sciences and associate laboratory director for energy sciences at LBNL.

A ground water hydrologist and reservoir engineer, Benson has conducted research to address a range of issues related to energy and the environment. Her research interests include geologic storage of CO2 in deep underground formations, technologies and energy systems for a low-carbon future, and geotechnical instrumentation for subsurface characterization and monitoring.

The author or co-author of more than 160 scientific publications, Benson is a member of the American Geophysical Union, the Society of Petroleum Engineers, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Chemical Society.