Jim Downing is a Director in the San Francisco office with expertise in water, energy, agriculture, and land use. He has worked on energy and resources issues for more than 20 years, specializing in communications, stakeholder engagement, strategic planning, and project management. Before joining Kearns & West, Jim directed the scientific outreach and extension communications group at University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, where he initiated and co-led a major online engagement project and facilitated major publications projects, industry partnerships, and communications planning. Prior to that, he ran a consultancy that supported outreach and stakeholder engagement for NGO, utility, and agency clients in the fields of water, energy and conservation. Jim began his career as a daily newspaper reporter at the Seattle Times and the Sacramento Bee, covering energy, water, agriculture, and local politics.