Alexandra Dapolito Dunn

Alexandra Dunn is a Partner in the Environmental, Safety, and Incident Response group at the international law firm of Baker Botts with 28 plus years of practice at the local, state, and federal levels of government. In addition to her teaching at the George Washington University Law School, she has taught Environmental Justice at the Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, as well as at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University, and at the American University Washington College of Law.

Ms. Dunn works with companies of all sizes – from multi-national corporations to startups – and with non-profit organizations on environmental justice and risk communication, sustainability, the regulation and management of emerging contaminants, chemical regulations, enforcement and compliance assistance, and risk communication. Her deep relationships across the nation and reputation for transparency, fairness, and equity, make her an effective presence in diverse and complex settings.

From 2019-2021, with unanimous the consent of the U.S. Senate, Ms. Dunn served as Assistant Administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. Overseeing 900 career staff, she was responsible for the creation of national policies implementing federal laws governing chemicals, pesticides, and pollution prevention. She was EPA Administrator for New England from 2018-2019, where she focused on watersheds, enforcement, and environmental justice. Previously, Ms. Dunn served as Executive Director and General Counsel of the Environmental Council of the States, the non-partisan association of U.S. state and territorial environmental commissioners. She held other dynamic positions in her career, including Executive Director and General Counsel of the Association of Clean Water Agencies; Dean of Environmental Law Programs at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University; General Counsel of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies; and Counsel at the American Chemistry Council. Professor Dunn is a known author on the topics of green cities, urban sustainability, environmental justice, and watershed management.

The National Law Journal recognized Ms. Dunn in 2021 as an Energy and Environmental Trailblazer and Chambers ranked her in the field of environmental law in 2022. She serves on the Leadership Council of the Environmental Law Institute, the Board of Regents of the American College of Environmental Lawyers, on the American Law Institute’s Environmental Law Advisory Panel, and as a leader in the American Bar Association’s Section of Environment, Energy and Resources and the Section of Litigation’s Environmental Litigation Committee.