Danny Cullenward

Shleifer Senior Fellow

Danny Cullenward is an economist and lawyer focused on the scientific integrity of climate policy. At the Kleinman Center, he is a Shleifer Senior Fellow and his research interests include climate governance, carbon markets, and the political economy of energy transitions. His book, Making Climate Policy Work (with David G. Victor), shows how political forces make green industrial policy more effective than carbon pricing. 

In addition to his research, Cullenward is a member of the UNFCCC Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism’s Methodological Expert Panel and the vice chair of California’s Independent Emissions Market Advisory Committee. He has given invited expert testimony at more than a dozen legislative hearings, served as an independent expert witness in litigation, represented scientists in amicus legal briefs, and authored dozens of technical comment letters to government regulators and private standard-setting bodies. 

Cullenward holds a JD and a PhD in Environment and Resources from Stanford University, where he also earned an MS in Management Science and Engineering and a BS with interdisciplinary honors in Earth Systems. He is a member of the State Bar of California.