1st International Conference and Workshop on Climate Adaptation and Resilience

Tim Fox CEng FIMechE: Immediate Past Chair, Process Industries Division, Institution of Mechanical Engineers

Tim is an internationally recognised expert in climate change mitigation and adaptation with specialist knowledge of clean energy systems, sustainable cooling, sea level rise, sustainable food systems and the process industries. He works as an independent consultant operating at the intersection of science-engineering-policy-business-communications. Tim is a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, where he chairs the Climate Change Adaptation Working Group. Tim has authored numerous peer-reviewed papers, research reports, IMechE thought leadership reports and policy papers, and has commented widely in the press and at conferences and webinars.

Carola Koenig: Vice Dean International and a Reader in the College of Engineering, Design and Physical Sciences, Brunel University London

Following her degree in Mechanical Engineering (Dipl-Ing) from the University of Stuttgart, Germany in 1992 and a short period in the automotive industry she obtained a PhD from Brunel in 1998. Her expertise is in Fluid Mechanics, including CFD, within a variety of multi-disciplinary environments which comprise biomedical and bioprocess engineering as well as thermofluids engineering. Prior to her international role she was Course Director of Brunel’s Flood and Coastal Engineering programmes, a programme suite of both, undergraduate and postgraduate courses sponsored by the Environment Agency and co-delivered with HR Wallingford, a renowned, independent civil engineering and environmental hydraulics organisation. In conjunction to that role, her research has widened to include also adaptation to climate change, such as flooding, sea level rise and health. She is a Charted Engineer and Member of the IMechE where she is the immediate past Chair of the Thermofluids Group and a member of its Climate Change Adaptation Working Group. She is also a Fellow of the Institute of the Higher Education Academy and has a keen interest in education management.

Dr. Catherine Kilelu: Senior Research Fellow, African Center for Technology Studies (ACTS) (Kenya)

Dr. Catherine Kilelu is a Senior Research Fellow at ACTS, where she recently was the Project Coordinator of the 3R Kenya (Robust, Resilient and Reliable). 3R Kenya is a learning initiative that assessed evidence and drew lessons on market-led models in spurring sustainable agri-food systems transformation in relation to shifting trends from aid to trade and investment approaches in Kenya. She is currently leading as assessment on food and nutrition insecurity vulnerability analysis and modelling under COVID-19 in selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Dr. Kilelu received a Ph.D. in Social Sciences from Wageningen University with her thesis focusing on the role of innovation support for inclusive smallholder commercialization. She has vast experience in Research for Development, having worked at the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and as a Consultant.

Her research interests are in agri-food systems innovation and transitions mainly in sub-Saharan Africa linked to sustainability, competitiveness, employment creation and resilient livelihoods and on circular bio-economy. Dr. Kilelu has numerous publications in international peer reviewed journals and book chapters related to these themes.

Dr Chris Green: Associate Clinical Professor & Consultant Physician in Infectious Diseases, Birmingham University

Christopher divides his time between working as an Infectious Diseases physician in the NHS and as an academic/clinical researcher with the University. His main research interests are in translational medicine, vaccines development, understanding the immune response to infection/vaccination, and in new approaches to the problem of antimicrobial resistance.

Clare Reinhold: Building Services Engineering Director, BDP

Clare Reinhold is a Building Services Engineering Director with over 20 years’ experience. Working within the education and laboratory sectors, Clare leads environmental engineering teams with a portfolio of projects across London. Clare’s strong integrated approach to design, and the use of innovative and passive engineering solutions, is combined with a thorough understanding of the complex design interfaces required to achieve successful integrated engineering solutions.  

Lucy Townsend: Director, Head of Sustainability, BDP

Lucy Townsend is Head of Sustainability at BDP, a major interdisciplinary practice of architects, designers, engineers and urbanists. Since joining BDP 9 years ago, Lucy has been instrumental in the development and growth of the specialist sustainability group. Committed to ensuring core sustainable values are embedded in the design and use of buildings and communities, Lucy is passionate about seeking innovative solutions that respond to the global climate and biodiversity emergency.

Dr Nitin Bassi: Senior Programme Lead for the Sustainable Water Team, CEEW

Nitin is a Senior Programme Lead for the Sustainable Water Team at the Council. He is a Natural Resource Management Specialist and his focus areas include River Basin Water Accounting, Agriculture Water Management, Institutional and Policy Analysis in Irrigation and Water Supply Management, Water Quality Analysis, Climate-induced Water Risk Assessment, and Wetland Management.

Nitin played a key role in  establishing the India-EU Water Partnership (IEWP). He was a Member of the Water Quality Task Force (River Ganga), set up by the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation (MoWR, RD & GR), Government of India (2017). He was also a Member of the Thematic sub-group on Water Management for Climate-Smart Cities Assessment Framework 2.0, set up by the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) and Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India in 2020-21.

Before joining the Council, Nitin worked with the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and the Institute for Resource Analysis and Policy (IRAP). He was also engaged as a specialist in projects and research studies supported by various national and international organisations including the European Commission, World Bank, GIZ, DFID, WRG 2030/IFC, UNICEF, WWF, and Department of Biotechnology, Government of India.

Ruth Shilston: Strategic Director, RWDI

Ruth is a strategic director and engineer specializing in microclimate design and building physics. Ruth collaborates with design teams and building owners to create spaces that are energy-efficient, well adapted to local climate, and comfortable for occupants. Ruth has carried out much of her work over the past decade on demanding projects, often stadia, in the challenging climates of the Middle East. Her project management approach is client-focused and results-driven, and her capacity to manage projects on any scale is demonstrated by her work as a client advisor and technical reviewer for the Qatar 2022 World Cup.

Prof. Toby Peters: Professor in Cold Economy, Co-Director, Centre for Sustainable Cooling, University of Birmingham

An award-winning technology developer (Liquid Air Energy Storage/Highview Power and the Dearman Engine), Toby leads the University's Birmingham Energy Institute’s activity around the Cold Economy and Clean Cooling and Cold-chains (for food and vaccines /pharma) and is recognised as one of the main architects of a growing UK and International understanding and realisation of the need for greater research and activity on clean cooling and cold-chain.

Toby specifically researches whole-system solutions to transition to sustainable cooling and cold-chain in both Developed and Developing Economies. He is co-Director of the Centre for Sustainable Cooling and is leading or collaborating in more than £20M of programmes across UK, Europe and the Developing World. This includes the design, finding and establishment of the first-of the-kind Africa Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Cooling and Cold-chain (ACES) with further Centres in development in other key geographies. He is also a Senior Advisor on Cooling/Cold-chain for Sustainable Energy for All, UNEP's Cool Coalition and the World Bank Group, as well as sits on numerous international advisory boards.

Dr Yash Shukla: Center Head and Principal Researcher, Centre for Advanced Research in Building Science and Energy (CARBSE), CEPT University

Dr. Yashkumar Shukla is Center Head and Principal Researcher at the Centre for Advanced Research in Building Science and Energy (CARBSE). He has more than seventeen years of research and consulting experience in high-performance buildings. He has led several ground-breaking research projects including low energy cooling and ventilation system in Indian residences, evaluation of innovative cooling technologies, and benchmarking of Indian buildings. He is also associated with the Master of Technology in Building Energy Performance (MBEP) program at the Faculty of Technology, CEPT University where he offers several courses and guides capstone projects.

Dr. Shukla's current research includes calibration of simulation models, smart grids, low cooling energy systems, performance characterization of the novel envelope and air conditioning systems, and development of the next-generation control algorithms. He is presently the team lead on the technical assistance program by Asian Development Bank on building disease resilient, smart, energy-efficient air conditioning systems in developing member countries.

Dr. Shukla possesses several professional certifications including certified measurements and verification professional (CMVP), Home energy rating system (HERS), GRIHA Trainer, and ECBC Master Trainer. He is an active member of the Indian Society of Heating Refrigerating Air conditioning Engineer (ISHRAE), the American Society of Heating Refrigerating Air conditioning Engineer (ASHRAE) and the International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA) societies. He also holds several leadership positions in these societies and chairs technical committees at national and international forums.

Dr. Shukla joined CARBSE in July 2011 after working for seven years in building energy efficiency domain the USA and worked as the technical director at the centre till April 2021. His prior work experience also includes the execution of sophisticated building automation systems, conducting building energy audits, and providing technical support on demand-side management (DSM) programs for electric utilities throughout the USA. He has completed a Doctor of Philosophy from CEPT University, Ahmedabad; Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A & M University, College Station; and a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering from Nirma Institute of Technology, Ahmedabad.

Jim Hall FREng: Professor of Climate and Environmental Risks , University of Oxford

Before joining the University of Oxford in 2011 to become Director of the University's Environmental Change Institute, Prof Hall held academic positions in the Newcastle University and the University of Bristol. Prof Hall is internationally recognised for his research on risk analysis and decision making under uncertainty for water resource systems, flood and coastal risk management, infrastructure systems and adaptation to climate change. Professor Hall is a member of the Prime Minister's Council for Science and Technology, is a Commissioner of the National Infrastructure Commission and is Vice President of the Institution of Civil Engineers. He was a member of the UK independent Committee on Climate Change Adaptation from 2009 to 2019 and was Chair of the Science Advisory Committee of the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) from 2020 to 2022.

Prof Mark Macklin: Distinguished Professor of River Systems and Global Change, Lincoln Centre for Water and Planetary Health, University of Lincoln

Mark is Head of the School of Geography and Director of the Lincoln Centre for Water and Planetary Health. His subject specialisms include river channel and floodplain responses to climate change, long-term human-river environment interactions, alluvial archaeology, flood-risk assessment, metal mining pollution and its impact on ecosystem and human health, and the hydrological controls of malaria.

Prof Matthias Garschagen: Chair in Human Geography, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Munich

Before joining LMU, Matthias Garschagen worked for the United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) in Bonn, where he lead a section of around 20 researchers working on Vulnerability Assessment, Risk Management and Adaptive Planning (VARMAP). Matthias Garschagen holds a PhD in Geography from the University of Cologne, Germany. He has extended fieldwork experience in Vietnam (over 18 months) and a number of other countries, including India and Indonesia. Matthias Garschagen studied Geography, Economics and Cultural Anthropology in Cologne and Vancouver at Simon Fraser University. He received scholarships from the German National Academic Foundation (Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes) and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)

Prof Paul Bates: Professor of Hydrology, School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol

Paul Bates is an expert in the science of flooding. He develops simulations models and combines these with satellite and airborne data to advance fundamental understanding and reduce threats to life and economic losses worldwide.

Paul is a hydrologist by background, a Fellow of the Royal Society and of the American Geophysical Union, a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award holder and in 2019 was awarded a CBE for services to flood risk management.  He is also Chairman of the flood risk analytics company Fathom (www.fathom.global).

He has widespread research interests in risk, resilience, uncertainty, governance and decision-making in relation to natural hazards and global water issues. He is a double recipient of the Lloyd's of London Science of Risk prize and in 2015 he was awarded a 50th Anivversary Prize for Economic Impact by the UK's Natural Environment Research Council.  He has published over 230 papers in international peer-reviewed journals, and these were cited over 2000 times in 2020 according to the ISI Web of Knowledge. He currently has an ISI H-index of 77 (or 97 on Google Scholar). For a full publication list see here.

Paul's main science contribution has been to improve the prediction of flood inundation through the development of new computer models, the use of data from new airborne, satellite and ground sensors and through the better characterization of risk and uncertainty.  For videos of Paul talking about his research see here and here.

He has held Visiting Scientist positions at Princeton University, Dept. of Civil Engineering, Laboratoire National d'Hydraulique, Paris, the EU Joint Research Centre, Ispra, Italy and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

He also undertakes significant International collaboration, including work with the French National Space Agency (CNES), Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia in Brazil, as well as numerous universities in the US, Europe and Africa.

Peter Robinson: Lead Rivers and Coasts Engineer UK&I, AECOM

Peter is a Chartered Civil Engineer and a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers with over 18 years’ experience working on flood risk, surface water management and infrastructure projects across the UK and Middle East.

His career highlights include co-authoring CIRIAs UK Water Sensitive Urban Design Guidelines, as well as helping deliver the large-scale Jeddah Stormwater Drainage Programme, Saudi Arabia.

He has been supporting Scottish Canals over the last six years, identifying and developing opportunities to diversify the use of the existing canal system.  The North Glasgow Integrated Water Management System (NGIWMS) concept is the most recent project – it promotes the creation of a pioneering drainage system, using the canal and modern technology to reduce flood risk and unlock regeneration across Scotland’s central belt.

Dr Dan Bernie: Science Manager, UK Climate Resilience Team, Met Office

Dan joined the Met Office in 2007 to work on tropical climate variability and climate model development before being going on secondment to central Government (DECC now BEIS) as a science adviser. On returning to the Met Office Dan worked extensively on the AVOID and AVOID2 programmes before taking on the management of the Hadley Centre's Mitigation Advice team and working on a number of EU projects. Dan started as manager of the UK Climate Resilience team in 2019.

Much of Dan's work relates to the Strategic Priorities Fund (SPF), where he manages the development and delivery of various parts of the Met Office SPF workplan and the specification for SPF projects commissioned externally. Most of this research relates to the translation of hazard information to risk for a wide range of sectors, stakeholders and decision makers. As well as SPF, Dan is involved in research into the mitigation of climate change, providing advice and guidance to government and statutory bodies on topics such carbon budgets, long term targets, feasibility of emissions scenarios, and uncertainty in climate processes and projections.

Prior to his career with UK government, Dan worked for the CNRS at IPSL in Paris and obtained a PhD in meteorology from the University of Reading. Dan also has a part time position at the University of Bristol where he is Associate Professor in the Medical school.

Prof Emma Tompkins: Professor of Geography, Environment & Development, University of Southampton

Professor Emma Tompkins has been researching human adaptations to environmental change and shocks for 30 years. Over the last 20 years, she has focussed on how people can and are adapting to climate and weather hazards. She has degrees in economics, environmental economics and environmental science, and has graduated from Universities of Leicester, London and East Anglia.

Her current research interests are around human adaptations to emergent environmental and climatic risks in the context of multiple stressors.

She has been a lead author for the IPCC (AR5, Chap 29. Small Islands), as well as a contributing author to other Assessment Reports. She has contributed to the first and third UK Climate Change Risk Assessments in 2012 and 2022.  

Mark Simmonds: Director of Policy & External Affairs, British Ports Association

Mark Simmonds joined the Association in 2016 and leads on environmental and technical policy issues. He is also our main liaison for media and public affairs enquiries.

Before joining the BPA he spent five years working for an MP in the House of Commons as a senior researcher and speechwriter, focusing on business and technology policy.

Prior to that he worked in Government as a policy advisor and a Business and Systems Analyst at the Dreyfus Corporation, part of the Bank of New York Mellon in the USA.

Prof Robert Nicholls: Director of the Tyndall Centre & Professor of Climate Adaptation, Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research

Prof D Parthasarathy: Founding Dean, School of Public Policy, Nayanta University

Dr. Susheela Negi: Senior Director, Climate Change and Clean Energy,Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India

Dr. Susheela Negi is a Senior Director, Climate Change and Clean Energy at the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India. She holds a Doctorate Degree in Agriculture and recipient of various fellowships. Presently she is coordinating and implementing two important National Missions on Climate Change of the Government of India. a) National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE) and (b) National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for Climate Change (NMSKCC).

With nearly two decades of involvement in formulation, coordination and implementation of various research program on multi-partnership Joint Technology Projects, Inter-disciplinary S&T programmes of Socio-Economic Ministries, Youth in Weather and Science, CO₂ Sequestration Research, Human Capacity Building Programmes for Himalayan Region and Climate Change Science & Adaptation she seamlessly bridges the realms of science and administration.

Recognizing the power of collaboration, she initiated and led the establishment of interdisciplinary Center of Excellence in Climate Change Research in India. She has shaped a comprehensive understanding of communities' vulnerable to climate change. This approach informs targeted adaptation strategies that address both ecological and societal challenges and methodologies for tackling multifaceted problems, such as climate change, public health crises, and sustainable development.

Peter von Lany : Senior Associate Director, Jacobs

Peter von Lany is a Senior Associate Director at Jacobs and a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers. He has extensive national and international experience in strategic decision-making relating to water resources planning, flood risk management, and climate change adaptation.

Peter is currently involved in developing and testing a framework for adaptive planning and applying adaptation pathways through pilot projects for The Environment Agency to explore their application to adapting to long-term flood and erosion risks. He advises water utilities on embedding adaptation to climate change within water resources planning and investment; and he contributed to the peer-review of the Third UK National Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA3). In 2018, he developed a set of outline adaptation pathways to help explore strategic policies for flood and erosion management in the face of climate change at selected UK coastal sites.

Peter chairs the Climate Change Adaptation panel at the British Standards Institution. He helped draft a British Standard (BS 8631:2021) on the application of Adaptation Pathways within adaptive planning for climate change; having earlier contributed to the drafting of ISO 14090:2019 on climate change adaptation.

Jaap Flikweert: Leading Professional in flood and coastal resilience, Royal HaskoningDHV

Jaap Flikweert is Royal HaskoningDHV’s Leading Professional in flood and coastal resilience. He enjoys finding solutions for local schemes but also for national policy challenges, developing user-focused guidance, and translating Dutch water innovations to the UK. Jaap co-led the recent Shoreline Management Plan Refresh project and leads the Sandscaping initiative, including its application in Bacton (Norfolk). He works with public sector clients, businesses and landowners to help them deal with coastal change.

Phil Reid: Head of Energy Transition, Red Engineering

Phil is a Chartered Energy Services engineer whose career of over 40 years spans from oil and gas exploration in the Middle East and South America to Building services design in the data centre sector. Phil currently leads the Energy Transition team in Red Engineering which focusses on the design and implementation of low/zero Carbon decentralized generation schemes to provide electrical power, heating and cooling at campus scale to industrial sites and mission critical buildings. Future-proofing designs and the introduction of green fuels as they come to market is key in his team’s drive to true zero Carbon.

Ayuko Kobayakawa: Director for International Climate Change Adaptation Planning, Ministry of the Environment, Japan

Ayuko is a Director for International Climate Change Adaptation Planning, Ministry of the Environment, Japan.

She has worked in various subjects, including policy and practice in water management, contaminated waste and soil management, food loss and waste measures, recycling of e-waste and disaster waste management among others.

Currently as a Director for international Climate Change Adaptation Planning, she is responsible for overseeing policies and practices on adaptation and loss and damage. One of the projects that she is focusing on is promoting Early Warning System through public private partnership in Asia Pacific region. 

David Hill: Director General for Environment, Defra

In December 2019, David became Director General for Environment, and is responsible for international and domestic environment and marine policy.

David joined Defra in December 2018 as Director of Environmental Quality. Prior to joining Defra, David was Director of Strategic Commissioning and Policy at Essex County Council, leading the authority’s work on place-based interventions and sustainable growth. David has held a number of senior roles in various Government Departments including Director of Apprenticeships in DfE/BIS from 2015 to 2017 where he was SRO for the Apprenticeship Reform programme; Director of Strategy and Communications in DCLG, and a member of the DCLG Board, from 2013 to 2015; and Principal Private Secretary to the Communities Secretary from 2011 to 2013. Earlier in his career David coordinated UK international climate change strategy in preparation for the COPs in Copenhagen and Cancun.  

Prof Yuichi Harada: ., Kyushu University

Dr Daisuke Yasutake: ., Kyushu University

Dr Dominic Hames: Senior Lecturer, University of the West of England

Dr Dominic Hames is a Senior Lecturer in the Civil Engineering cluster at the University of the West of England and has over 35 years of experience in flood and coastal defence related work both within the consultant and academic sector.

Dominic was part of the project team for the State of the Nation project to assess the coastal flood risk for the England following the winter 2013/14 floods, as well as the National flood risk assessment for England and Wales from 2008 until 2020.  He was part of the project team that worked on the UK’s first Climate Change Risk Assessment (2012), and was the lead or co-author of several reports, including the main Evidence report presented to Parliament.  Dominic led the development of the prototype overtopping tool used in the State of the Nation flood risk assessment and was a co-author of a paper on this methodology that won the ICE Bill Curtin Medal for Research and Innovation in 2018.  In 2016 he led the development of new Foundation, BSc and MSc degree programmes in Flood and Coastal Engineering at Brunel University that were run in conjunction with staff from HR Wallingford.  Dominic has also been involved in some of the most significant coastal projects in recent years.  He carried out the flood risk assessment for Hinkley Point C Nuclear Power Station, as well as the options appraisal for the new seawall at Dawlish following its spectacular failure in 2014.

He is a reviewer on several journals, and a visiting lecturer in flood risk management at the University of Brunel, as well as the Universities of East London and IHE Delft until last year.  Dominic has won the Halcrow Prize for the best paper in the ICE Maritime journal twice in recent years.

Alan McGoff: policy and strategy lead for >1GWe new nuclear build, Environment Agency

Alan McGoff is policy and strategy lead for >1GWe new nuclear build in the Environment Agency of England. Since 2005 he has been providing strategic advice to government and the Agency on the UK’s overall approach for new build, contributing to government policy and strategy documents. In 2006 he developed a two-phase approach to regulating new nuclear build in the UK, by creating Generic Design Assessment (GDA) alongside site-specific permitting. Four GW scale designs have now completed GDA successfully as has permitting of two new sites - Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C. GDA was developed further in 2019, optimising it for less mature designs, and the first GDA of a small modular reactor, the Rolls-Royce SMR commenced in 2022.  A physicist, Alan’s experience includes regulatory processes development and regulating sites as site inspector at Sizewell B and Bradwell Nuclear Power Stations and at other large industrial installations.  Previously at BNFL Sellafield, he led development and implementation of major bespoke radiometric instruments for the plants there.  Since 2015, Alan has been a Senior Visiting Fellow at the UK’s National Nuclear Laboratory.

Steve Thompsett: Director of Policy, Strategy and Research, JBA Consulting

Steve Thompsett is Director of Policy, Strategy and Research at JBA Consulting. He is also the current President of CIWEM and an Independant Member of the Thames Regional Flood and Coastal Committee. Steve has over 25 years of experience working in water, energy and flood and coastal risk management, across the private and public sectors. He has directed a broad range of policy, regulatory and technical areas in his career, driving improved environmental performance and governance. As an experienced leader, with a proven track record in driving cultural change, he's influenced policy and regulation development at the central Government and EU level.