Professor Dr Ainun Nishat is recognized as a pioneering expert of water resource management and climate change in Bangladesh. He did PhD in Civil Engineering from University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, U.K. in 1981. He achieved M.Sc in Civil Engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), 1975.

As an expert in water resource management, he was a member of the Indo-Bangladesh Joint River Commission and played a vital role in the Ganges Water Treaty Negotiations that were finalized in 1996. He was a member of the Panel of Experts who consulted the construction of the Jamuna Bridge, the longest bridge in Bangladesh and currently a member of the Panel of Experts consulting the construction of the Padma Bridge.

Besides working at various projects of the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, UNDP and other international and inter-governmental organizations; he has a close association with leading NGO's in Bangladesh. Before joining BRAC University, he was a Member of the Governing Body of BRAC. He also works closely with Bangladesh Center for Advanced Studies (BCAS), Bangladesh Center for Sustainable Development (CFSD), Bangladesh Unnayan Parishad (BUP), Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA) and other leading NGOs.He was Adjunct Professor in Institute of Natural Resources Management, University of Manitoba, Canada; IHE, Delft, The etherlands; Bangabandhu Sheik Mujubur Rahman Agriculture University. He also worked as a Professor at North South University, and Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB). As a resource person, he delivers lectures regularly at the Bangladesh Public Administration Training Center (BPATC), Planning Academy, National Academy for Educational Management (NAEM), National Defense Collage and the Armed Forces Staff College at Mirpur, Dhaka etc.