Bezaye Tessema, Ph.D., is a visiting postdoctoral scholar at the Center for Energy Studies and a postdoctoral research associate in the Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences (EEPS) department at Rice University.

Previously, she served as a postdoctoral research fellow at Rhodes University in South Africa through the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA). Originally from Ethiopia, Bezaye managed the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) project on “Water Security and Sustainable Development” for the Ethiopian Collaboratory, studying water resources across the Abbay, Awash, and Rift Valley Lakes Basins. 

Before this, she worked as a researcher and principal investigator at the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research, leading the IDRC-funded African Highlands Initiative project to promote sustainable land management in the central Ethiopian highlands. Her work involved coordinating multidisciplinary teams and collaborating with rural communities to enhance adaptive management.

Bezaye’s current research centers on nature-based solutions, carbon markets, and the integration of science and policy for real-world impact. She holds a doctorate from the University of New England in Australia, along with master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Addis Ababa University and Haramaya University in Ethiopia.