Dr. Salzberg serves as the Director of the Water Institute and the Don and Jennifer Holzworth Distinguished Professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering in the Gillings School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Prior to joining UNC, Aaron served as the Special Coordinator for Water Resources in the U.S. Department of State where he managed the development and implementation of U.S. foreign policy on drinking water and sanitation, water resources management, and transboundary water issues. He was the first person to hold this title. In this role, Aaron led the development of the first U.S. Government Global Water Strategy and represented the United States in many multi-lateral policymaking processes including the G7/G8, the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, and the World Water Forums. He also led the Department of State’s engagement on transboundary water issues in many regions throughout the world where water is, or may become, a source of tension or conflict.

Aaron has a Ph.D. in Genetic Toxicology and a Master of Science degree in Technology and Policy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Master of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Maryland. He is the recipient of numerous awards and distinctions including the Frank E. Loy Award for Environmental Diplomacy (from the U.S. Department of State), the Alan Berman Research Publication Award (from the Naval Center for Space Science and Technology), the Hugh Hampton Young Award (from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology), and the American Association for Cancer Research Young Investigator’s Award.  He currently holds appointments as a Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center and as a member of the World Meteorological Organization’s Scientific Research Board.