Kelsey T. Leonard

Kelsey Leonard is a water governance researcher specializing in Indigenous water rights at the University of Waterloo. She earned an MSc in water science, policy and management from St. Cross College, one of the thirty-eight colleges of the University of Oxford. In 2010, she was the first member of the Shinnecock Nation to graduate from Harvard University. Her Harvard degree is a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology and anthropology with a secondary field in ethnic studies.

Leonard earned a JD from Duquesne University School of Law, and a PhD in political science from McMaster University.

Leonard's TED Talk, "Why lakes and rivers should have the same rights as humans", has had 3.5 million views as of October 2023.