SPEAKERS

Ian James, Environment Reporter, The Desert Sun

Ian James is a reporter who focuses on water and environmental issues for The Desert Sun. He has written extensively about California’s historic drought and about growing water scarcity in the Southwest. James joined the newspaper in 2013 after working for The Associated Press. He was the AP’s bureau chief in Venezuela from 2004 to 2013, covering much of Hugo Chavez’s presidency. James previously worked for the AP as a correspondent covering the Caribbean region based in San Juan, Puerto Rico, as an editor on the International Desk in New York, and as a reporter in Miami. He is the author of the nonfiction book Ninety Miles: Cuban Journeys in the Age of Castro, about the lives of three Cubans during Fidel Castro’s rule. Originally from Lafayette, California, James holds a bachelor’s degree in public policy studies from Duke University and a master’s degree in journalism from Stanford University.

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