Karen Morrison

Karen Morrison is the assistant director and chief science adviser at the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR). Since joining DPR in 2018, Morrison has worked to advance major human health and environmental policy issues related to pesticide use in California.

Morrison has worked in the intersection of science, policy, and society at the state and local level since 2013. This includes positions with the California Senate Environmental Quality Committee, where she analyzed legislation and organized legislative oversight, and as a science adviser with the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery. Morrison also served as a commissioner on the Environment and Utilities Commission with the City of West Sacramento.

Morrison earned a PhD in chemistry from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a B.S. in chemistry from Harvey Mudd College. She and her family live in Sacramento.