Pearl Q. Zheng, PhD, PEng. is an engineer and a scientist, specializing in water resources management. She holds a BEng. in Environmental Engineering and BA in English from Tianjin University in China; an MEng. in Environmental Engineering from McMaster University in Canada; and an MA in Applied Mathematics and Statistics and a PhD in System Analysis and Economics for Public Decision Making from the Johns Hopkins University. She is a registered professional engineer and currently a senior analyst at Abt Associates Inc., conducting interdisciplinary research and providing engineering services for effective environmental policy-making and planning. Dr. Zheng has extensive statistical, hydrological, and Geographic Information System modeling skills. She has also supervised emission control projects in Canada and designed wastewater treatment facilities in China.