Max McNally is a first year PhD student in the Department of Urban Planning at UCLA and a Graduate Student Researcher with the Luskin Center for Innovation. His research broadly focuses on water resources planning and policy in California, with specific interests in drinking water quality and the water-fire nexus. Prior to beginning his PhD studies, Max worked professionally as a water resources planner with Woodard & Curran, an integrated science, engineering, and planning firm specializing in water and environmental projects. With Woodard & Curran, Max has worked with numerous state and local agencies such as the California Department of Water Resources, California State Water Resources Control Board, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, Alameda County Water District, and Sacramento Area Sewer District. In this role, he has contributed to a variety of projects including water resources master plans, groundwater sustainability plans, water loss audits, and demand forecast modelling. Max holds a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from UCI and bachelor’s degrees in history and communications from UCLA.