Our Team

Prof Mark Zeitoun leads the Geneva Water Hub, and is a Professor of Water Diplomacy at the Graduate Institute in Geneva. He has led on multiple research and water supply projects, and supported water negotiations throughout Western Asia and Africa. His research focuses on international transboundary water conflict and cooperation, the influence of armed conflict on water services, and the links between water, war and health. He studied engineering at McGill University and human geography at King’s College London. He is author of Power and Water: the Hidden Politics of the Palestinian-Israeli Water Conflict (IB Tauris 2008), Water Conflicts: Analysis for Transformation (OUP 2020, with Naho Mirumachi and Jeroen Warner), and Reflections: Understanding our use and abuse of water (OUP 2023).

Dr. Pellaton is the Operations Director for the Geneva Water Hub. As a member of the Steering Committee, she contributes to defining the overall strategy and of the Geneva Water Hub. Her responsibilities include overseeing the implementation of the Geneva Water Hub's programs and linking with key stakeholders. Additionally, she shares responsibility, alongside Dr. Mara Tignino, for defining and implementing the program on the protection of water in armed conflicts. From 2007 to 2018, Ms. Pellaton served as a coordinator for the Water and Habitat Unit of the International Committee of the Red Cross, working in diverse contexts such as Sri Lanka, Niger, the Republic of South Sudan, the Central African Republic, Yemen, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). She holds a doctorate in earth sciences from the University of Geneva.

Christian Bréthaut is an Associate Professor in water governance at the Institute for Environmental Sciences (ISE) and at the Department of Geography and Environment at the University of Geneva. He is the Scientific Director of the Geneva Water Hub and he co-leads the UNESCO Chair on Hydropolitics alongside with Géraldine Pflieger.His areas of expertise are the analysis of water policies and the issues associated with the management of cross border rivers. Prof. Bréthaut’s particular focus within the domain of water management is the capacity of institutions to adapt, the water-food-energy-ecosystems nexus and the exploration of the link between science and policy. Access his full biography on the dedicated University of Geneva webpage.

Danilo Türk is a Slovenian diplomat, professor of international law, human rights expert, and political figure who served as President of Slovenia from 2007 to 2012. He was the first Slovene ambassador to the United Nations, from 1992 to 2000, and was the UN Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs from 2000 to 2005. He is a visiting professor of international law at Columbia University in New York City, a professor emeritus at the Faculty of Law of the University of Ljubljana, and non-resident senior fellow of Chongyang Institute for Financial studies at Renmin University of China in Beijing. He is the founder of the Danilo Türk Foundation, devoted mostly to the rehabilitation of child victims of armed conflict. He was also Chair of the Global High Level Panel on Water and Peace between 2015 and 2017.

Natasha Carmi is a Programme Lead for the Geneva Water Hub’s “Building Peace through Water” work. She has been with the Geneva Water Hub since 2018, and leads the Hub’s work in the Western Asia and North Africa (WANA) region, contibutes to the Global Water Observatory on Water and Peace, and advances the women, water and peace agenda. She is also the founding member of the Empowerment of Women in Water Diplomacy in the MENA region initiative. Prior to that, she worked as water, agriculture and environment policy advisor to the Palestinian Negotiations Support Project, working closely with decision makers, and has experience in bilateral and regional water negotiations. She is used to working in highly sensitive and timely political environments, and has worked with water resources and environmental challenges in the Middle East for over 20 years. She is frequently a speaker at universities, conferences and workshops on transboundary water resources and hydropolitics, and runs role play and mock negotiations An engineer by education, Natasha holds a Master’s Degree in Hydrology for Environmental Management, from Imperial College in London.

Basilio Ghisletta manages the Geneva Water Hub's "Policy and Law Shaping" programme, and is the focal point for the diplomatic community and the international organizations based in Geneva. He strengthens diplomatic relations through the management of the Secretariat of the Group of Friends on Water and Peace, and informs and influences international processes linked to the water, development, peace and humanitarian efforts. Basilio has held several positions within the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (Bern, Niger) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (South Sudan), working at the policy, bilateral, multilateral, and humanitarian levels. He holds a Masters degree in Political Psychology of International Relations from the University of Birmingham.

Tadesse Kebebew is a researcher and project manager at the Platform for International Water Law of the Geneva Water Hub. He develops the follow-up activities related to the Geneva List of Principles on the Protection of Water Infrastructure, focusing on the status of water in military manuals, a monitoring mechanism and the topic of accountability. He previously served as a Research and Technology Interchange Director at Dire Dawa University in Ethiopia. He was also a Lecturer in Law at the Dire Dawa University College of Law from 2011 to 2015 and provided trainings for professionals, including judges and prosecutors in conflict affected areas such as the Somali Regional State of Ethiopia. He holds a PhD in International Law from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. 

Stéphane Kluser is responsible for communication tools at the Geneva Water Hub, particularly the development of maps and visuals. His work includes the creation of water maps, content management for the online platform, and layout for digital and printed products.  He holds a Masters degree in Environmental Sciences from the University of Geneva with a specialization in geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing. Access full biography on the dedicated University of Geneva webpage.

Imane Messaoudi-Mattei is a Senior Research Associate at the Geneva Water Hub, contributing to the programme on “Setting the Research Agenda.” Her research is rooted in social science methods and theories, and explores issues of access, use and management of water (and land) resources around the world. Imane is currently working on critical discourses analysis in transboundary water management. Prior to joining the Geneva Water hub, Imane worked as an agronomist engineer specializing in the economic and social development of rural areas. Her research work has mainly focused on irrigation practices, on the sustainability of rural areas, the interdependencies between rural spaces and urban spaces, and more generally on the analysis of agricultural and environmental policies in semi-arid countries. In addition to her research activities, over the last 8 years Imane has taught in several universities and engineering schools to different audiences on environmental questions and issues. Imane holds a PhD in geography from Paris Nanterre University (France) and from University of Fribourg (Switzerland). 

Ms. Monica Nuñez manages the Geneva Water Hub’ training and education programmes. This involves leading the planning, developing, implementation and follow-up phases of our various online, blended and in-person teaching initiatives. Before joining the Geneva Water Hub, Monica worked for 12 years at the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) where she was in charge of developing and implementing online, blended and face-to-face capacity-building projects in the field of International Law, and in particular, International Environmental Law. She holds a Bachelor Degree in Law and in Political Sciences (University of Lima – Peru), a Master’s Degree in European and Economic Law (University of Lausanne), a second Master’s in Business Law (University of Geneva) as well as a Diploma in International Environmental Law (UNITAR). She has complemented her legal qualifications with several courses on the conception and development of online training projects (University of Geneva, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences).

Quentin Parent is a project manager at the Geneva Water Hub under the programme “Building Peace through Water”. He is responsible for supporting and promoting the activities of the "Water for Peace Diplomacy in the Sahel and West Africa." Its activities are aimed at building social cohesion and inducing effective forms of water cooperation. He is also involved in the “Education and Training” programme, contributing to the organization of the Summer School in Water Governance. Quentin holds a Master's degree in Environmental Sciences from the University of Geneva, as well as a Bachelor's degree in Private Law from the University of Nice-Sophia-Antipolis. 

Erik Schnetzler contributes to the "Shaping Policy and Law" and "Building Peace Through Water Diplomacy" programmes at the Geneva Water Hub. His tasks include working on projects aimed at improving transboundary water management, promoting shared and equitable water use and supporting water-related peace efforts. Prior to joining the Geneva Water Hub, he worked as a consultant in the Economic and Environmental Dimension of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Programme Office in Astana and before that as Environment Officer in the Science Division of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi. Erik holds an MSc in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a BA in History and Classics from the University of Basel. 

Dr. Mara Tignino is Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law and Lead Legal Specialist of the Platform for International Water Law at the Geneva Water Hub. She is the lead author of the Geneva List of Principles on the Protection of Water Infrastructure which was translated in French, Arabic and Russian (2019) and A Review of the Legal Tools Applicable to Dams Planning, Development and Monitoring (2021). She is also co-lead author of  A Study of National Legal Frameworks related to the Protection of Water During Armed Conflicts (2023). She is the Chief Legal Specialist of the program “Protection of the Environment during Armed Conflict” (supported by the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of Slovenia) and the project “Transboundary Water Study and Support for the Government of Iraq” (supported by the United Nations Development Programme). She is a member of the International Institute of Humanitarian Law in Sanremo.

Laura Turley supports both the scientific and policy-facing work at the Geneva Water Hub and facilitates exchanges and synergies across this interface. Her research is rooted in social science methods and theories and explores the operation of institutions and infrastructure in the context of water scarcity, and the conditions required for collective action and equitable water allocation in local and transboundary settings. Prior to joining the Geneva Water Hub, Laura worked with the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) for over a decade, as a researcher and policy advisor on public procurement, investment policy, infrastructure planning, and the use of voluntary sustainability standards. She has also consulted on water governance topics for several international organizations, development banks, and universities. Laura holds a PhD in Environmental Policy from the University of Geneva and an MSc in Water Science, Policy and Management from the University of Oxford.

Jean Willemin leads Geneva Water Hub’s engagements in the Sahel and West Africa, where the organisation has been facilitating a mutli-stakeholders dialogue on water as driver of peace in the region since 2018. Jean’s passion and field of work lies in organising collective strategic reflexion and connecting actors around water-related challenges. Before joining the Geneva Water Hub, he worked in the field of humanitarian and human rights, both for international organisations and NGOs with a decade of engagement on water governance issues. Furthermore, he is specialised in facilitation methods that he has been performing in the frame of mandates for international organisations, NGOs and public administrations. Jean holds a Master's degree in Sociology and a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Water Policy and Management from the University of Geneva.

Professor at the Faculty of Law of the University of Geneva since 1999, Laurence Boisson de Chazournes, who is also the Director of the GWH International Water Law Platform, is also Visiting Professor at Aix-Marseille University, Paris I and Paris II Universities as well as the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (Geneva). She is the Director of the Geneva LL.M. in International Dispute Settlement (MIDS) and co-Director of the Geneva Center for International Dispute Settlement (CIDS). She is an Associate Member of the Institute of International Law (IDI). Laurence Boisson de Chazournes is an arbitrator and has acted as counsel before the International Court of Justice as well as in other international fora and has been involved in numerous negotiations regarding international watercourses. She was a member of the Global High-Level Panel on Water and Peace between 2015 and 2017. Her publications can be accessed here.

François Münger holds Masters degrees in mineralogy and geophysics (Univ. of Lausanne), hydrology (Univ. of Neuchâtel), and environmental engineering (EPFL). His experience spans across a range of different private and public institutions in Switzerland, Africa, Latin America, Central Asia and East Europe. He notably was the Chief of the Central America Water Programme for the Swiss Agency for Cooperation and Development (SDC) and Senior Water Specialist at the World Bank. After heading SDC’s Global Water Program for the past eight years, François was awarded the title of Swiss Special Envoy for Water and given responsibility for the creation and development of the Geneva Water Hub.