Nick Brozovic

Nick Brozovic serves as Director of Policy for the Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute and Professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. With over twenty years of international experience, he bridges academic research, policy development, and entrepreneurial initiatives to address critical water-agriculture challenges across nonprofit, for-profit, and governmental sectors.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of California, Berkeley (2002)
• M.S. in Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of California, Berkeley (2000)
• M.S. in Geological Sciences, University of Southern California (1996)
• B.A. in Geology, Oxford University (1993)

Research Focus: Brozovic's work integrates hydrological, economic, and social dimensions to advance sustainable water management. His expertise spans groundwater policy design, irrigation technology economics, and natural resource governance—with documented fieldwork supporting smallholder irrigation entrepreneurs in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Key projects examine solar-powered groundwater systems, aquifer depletion impacts, and water-energy-food nexus dynamics in agricultural contexts.

Publication Trends: Recent articles (2020-2024) reveal three dominant themes: (1) groundwater sustainability under climate stress, (2) economic valuation of irrigation water, and (3) institutional innovations for water markets. His research increasingly employs remote sensing and hydrologic-economic modeling to quantify trade-offs in water allocation policies, particularly within the US High Plains Aquifer region.

Scientific Awards: No awards were documented in the provided sources.

Mentorship & Collaboration: Brozovic oversees student interns and postdoctoral researchers while convening cross-sector partnerships involving multinational corporations, NGOs, and government agencies. His leadership extends to agtech incubators and corporate strategy consulting, with recent initiatives targeting water-risk mitigation for agricultural investors.

Institutional Role: As core leadership of the Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute, he drives strategic initiatives connecting Nebraska's agricultural hub to global water-security challenges through policy-relevant research and entrepreneurial ecosystem development.