6th European Climate Change Adaptation Conference 2023
June 19th - 21st
Dublin, Ireland
Meet Our Speakers
Session Chair: Frank McGovern Ireland’s Environmental Protection Agency
Frank McGovern is Chief climate scientist with the EPA, and Chair of JPI Climate. Leading on communications and informing actions on climate change and atmospheric protection. National representative to IPCC and regular member of the national delegation to the UNFCCC. PHD atmospheric physics, NUIG. MSc TCD. He provides effective expert advice and support on climate change issues and develop European research in support of actions to advance implementation of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change under the UNFCCC and supporting the work of the IPCC through advancing climate change research across the multiple challenges, and dimensions, of climate change.
Speaker: Hans-Otto Pörtner IPCC Working Group II
Prof Hans-Otto Pörtner received his PhD and habilitated in Animal Physiology at Münster and Düsseldorf Universities. As a Research and then Heisenberg Fellow of the German Research Council he worked at Dalhousie and Acadia Universities, Nova Scotia, Canada and at the Lovelace Medical Foundation, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, before he became Professor and Head of Integrative Ecophysiology at the Alfred Wegener Institute, Bremerhaven, Germany. He has established theory and evidence on effects of climate warming, ocean acidification, and hypoxia on marine organisms and ecosystems. More generally, his efforts focus on linking organism biogeography and ecosystem functioning to molecular, biochemical and physiological mechanisms shaping organism tolerance and performance. After his earlier contributions (as Lead Author and Coordinating Lead Author) to the 4th and 5th assessment cycles of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) he was elected Co-Chair of IPCC Working Group II for AR6 in October 2015. He is an elected member of the European Academy of Sciences, the German Advisory Council on Global Change and a Web of Science/Clarivate Analytics highly cited researcher (top 1% Cross-Field) 2018 onward.
Speaker: Blaž Kurnik European Environment Agency
Speaker: Blaž Kurnik European Environment Agency
Blaž Kurnik has worked at the European Environment Agency (EEA) since 2010 in various positions. He has been a coordinator of and contributor to various EEA reports on climate change impacts and adaptation, notably on climate change adaptation in the agriculture sector, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction and climate change impacts in Europe. Mr Kurnik is now head climate change impact and adaptation group. He leads a team of experts working on various climate change adaptation topics. Prior joining the EEA, Mr Kurnik worked at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission and in the Slovenian Meteorological Service. He holds a PhD degree in climatology.
Speaker: John Bell Director Healthy Planet, DG Research and Innovation, European Commission
Dr John Bell is the European Commission’s ‘Healthy Planet” Director leading Research & Innovation policy transitions on Climate Change, Bioeconomy, Food Systems, Environment, Biodiversity, Water, Circular Economy, Oceans and the European Green Deal. He leads the EU’s €10 billion Horizon Europe R&I programme across these planetary transitions. As Chair of the Governing Board of €2 billion Circular Bio-based Europe institutionalised partnership with industry, he leads the deployment of the EU Bioeconomy Strategy. He is the Deputy Mission Manager for the EU Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”.
Speaker: Kirsten Dunlop Climate KIC
Speaker: Kirsten Dunlop Climate KIC
Kirsten Dunlop is Chief Executive Officer at Climate-KIC. Her vision for Climate-KIC is to co-create a multi-sided marketplace for transformation and the generation of innovation options to achieve a zero-carbon economy and a climate resilient society. In her role at Suncorp, Kirsten founded and led a bespoke division focused on managing and responding to strategic risk through innovation, transforming core business and industry models from within. Prior to roles in Second Road, KPMG and Suncorp in Australia, Kirsten led the Generali Group Innovation Academy for Assicurazioni Generali in Italy, pioneering proprietary thinking in the areas of Strategic Risk management, strategic innovation, strategic leadership development and cultural change. Kirsten holds a Ph.D. in cultural history.
Speaker: Susanne Mecklenburg Head of the ESA Climate Office • ESA
Susanne Mecklenburg is responsible for promoting and increasing the use of satellite-based Earth Observation data in climate science. Her current focus is the delivery of ESA's Climate Change Initiative programme and developing future programme activities with ESA Climate Office as the focal point for climate.
Speaker: Oileán Carter Stritch Department of Environment Climate and Communications and the National Youth council of Ireland
Speaker: Oileán Carter Stritch Department of Environment Climate and Communications and the National Youth council of Ireland
Oileán Carter Stritch is Ireland’s first Climate Youth Delegate with the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications and the National Youth Council of Ireland where she represented Irish youth at COP27 and SB58. She has been involved with Change Clothes Crumlin since it’s beginning, where there is a focus on accessible climate action, circular economy and community. More information on Change Clothes Crumlin can be found here.
Speaker: Anna Hulda Ólafsdóttir Director of the Climate Service and Adaptation Centre at the Icelandic Met Office
Anna Hulda Ólafsdóttir, PhD is the Director of the Icelandic Climate Service and Adaptation Centre at the Icelandic Met Office and the Head of the National Knowledge Network for Climate Change Adaptation. She is also a Steering Committee Member for the National Adaptation Plan and one of the organizers of the NOCCA23 conference. Anna is an avid environmentalist with a passion for data and system modeling. She holds a PhD in Industrial Engineering, specializing in System Dynamics. Before joining the Icelandic Met Office, she was an Associate Professor at the University of Iceland and a Work Package Leader in the H2020 research project LOCOMOTION, focusing on the technical and biophysical system modeling.
Speaker: Katarzyna Smętek Polish Youth Climate Council
Speaker: Katarzyna Smętek Polish Youth Climate Council
Katarzyna Smętek is an initiator and a former president of the Polish Youth Climate Council. She has served as a European Climate Pact Ambassador and a member of the Youth Task Force of the European Climate Pact Secretariat. She was the President of the WUF11 Youth Council, coordinating youth engagement at the 11th session of the World Urban Forum. She is a member of the Transdisciplinary Advisory Body of JPI Climate and the Council on Environment, Energy and Natural Resources to the President of Poland.
Speaker: Wolfgang Pfefferkorn
International
Commission for the Protection of the Alps CIPRA
Speaker: Wolfgang Pfefferkorn International Commission for the Protection of the Alps CIPRA
Wolfgang Pfefferkorn is an Austrian senior expert in regional planning and conflict management.
In his work for CIPRA International, an alpine NGO and bridging organisation, he tries to bring together researchers and practitioners in different topics and contexts. With its Youth Council (CYC), CIPRA gives a voice to young people living in the alpine region.
More information at cirpa.org
Further, Wolfgang Pfefferkorn is co-owner of Rosinak & Partner, a consultancy based in Vienna and Dornbirn, Austria. Climate change, citizens engagement as well as community and regional planning are key issues of their work at rosinak.at
Session Chair: Paul Watkiss, Paul Watkiss Associates Limited
Paul Watkiss is the director of a climate research consultancy and has over 20 years of experience in adaptation policy, economics and finance. He is currently working on the ACCREU project on the economics of adaptation in Europe and the Pathways to Resilience project which is developing resource mobilisation and finance for adaptation for regions.
Paul has worked on climate risk and adaptation assessment methods for the Asian Development Bank and European Investment Bank and has led numerous major studies and has written over 100 publications, reports and conference papers. He is the joint lead author of the UNEP adaptation finance gap report.
Speaker: Andrew Ferrone
Meteorological
Department at Administration of Technical Agricultural Services
Speaker: Andrew Ferrone Meteorological Department at Administration of Technical Agricultural Services
Andrew Ferrone is the head of the meteorological department of the Administration of Technical Agricultural Services (ASTA) in Luxembourg. He holds a PhD in Climate Science from the Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium. He serves as president of the Luxembourgish Climate Policy Observatory and a represents Luxembourg at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Speaker: Conor Quinlan
Climate Services, at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Speaker: Conor Quinlan Climate Services, at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Conor Quinlan is Senior Manager, Climate Services, at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Ireland. He completed a PhD in karst hydrology and hydrogeology and spent eight years working in hydrogeological consultancy before moving to EPA. His work there has focused on delivery of the National Hydrometric Monitoring Programme, the National Water framework Directive Groundwater Monitoring Programme, establishing national abstraction impact assessment procedures, and working to incorporate climate change impact assessment and adaptation measures into these work areas at national level. Conor has played a key role in preparations for ECCA2023.
MASTER of CEREMONY: Karen Coleman, Broadcaster and Journalist specialising in
EU issues and MD SkyeByte
Productions
MASTER of CEREMONY: Karen Coleman, Broadcaster and Journalist specialising in EU issues and MD SkyeByte Productions
Karen Coleman is an award-winning broadcaster, journalist and documentary filmmaker from Ireland. She is the editor of EU News Radio (Ireland) which covers stories from the European Commission, European Council and other EU Institutions for Irish radio stations.
Karen is also the founder and MD of Irish company SkyeByte productions which makes multi-media content for online platforms and broadcasting outlets. A former BBC foreign correspondent, Karen has been covering European and international affairs for radio and television for many years.
Speaker: Nadia Pinardi, Director,
UN Decade Collaborative Center on Coastal Resilience
Nadia Pinardi is the co-Chair of the Knowledge Hub on Sea Level Rise. She holds a Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Harvard University and is currently full professor of Oceanography at the University of Bologna, Italy. Her major achievement is the conceptual design and practical implementation of ocean forecasting systems across the world ocean. From 2012 to 2019 she was co-president of the Joint Committee for Oceanography and Marine Meteorology (JCOMM) of UNESCO-IOC and WMO and she is, since 2019, elected vice-president of the Commission for Observation, Infrastructure and Information Systems (Infrastructure Commission) of WMO. She is chair of the UN Decade for Ocean Science Program “CoastPredict” and Director of the UN Decade Collaborative Center for Coastal Resilience.
Speaker: Nadia Pinardi, Director, UN Decade Collaborative Center on Coastal Resilience
Nadia Pinardi is the co-Chair of the Knowledge Hub on Sea Level Rise. She holds a Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Harvard University and is currently full professor of Oceanography at the University of Bologna, Italy. Her major achievement is the conceptual design and practical implementation of ocean forecasting systems across the world ocean. From 2012 to 2019 she was co-president of the Joint Committee for Oceanography and Marine Meteorology (JCOMM) of UNESCO-IOC and WMO and she is, since 2019, elected vice-president of the Commission for Observation, Infrastructure and Information Systems (Infrastructure Commission) of WMO. She is chair of the UN Decade for Ocean Science Program “CoastPredict” and Director of the UN Decade Collaborative Center for Coastal Resilience.
Speaker: Alain Bourque, Ouranos, Organizer of Adaptation Futures
Alain Bourque has been the Executive Director of Ouranos since 2013. Mr Bourque joined Ouranos at its inception in 2001 to set up the program on vulnerabilities, impacts and adaptations, which has enabled the completion of more than 200 research projects, all applied to the risks and opportunities related to climate change in Quebec. He was the co-organizer of the 2016 Adaptation Canada conference and is the organizer of the international conference Adaptation Futures 2023 which will take place in Montreal. He also sits on the Advisory Committee on Climate Change, on the federal government’s National Adaptation Platform, and on several expert committees advising public policy. He is also a member of the boards of directors of Génome Québec, Calcul Québec, the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium, ClimAtlantic and START International.
Speaker: Alain Bourque, Ouranos, Organizer of Adaptation Futures
Alain Bourque has been the Executive Director of Ouranos since 2013. Mr Bourque joined Ouranos at its inception in 2001 to set up the program on vulnerabilities, impacts and adaptations, which has enabled the completion of more than 200 research projects, all applied to the risks and opportunities related to climate change in Quebec. He was the co-organizer of the 2016 Adaptation Canada conference and is the organizer of the international conference Adaptation Futures 2023 which will take place in Montreal. He also sits on the Advisory Committee on Climate Change, on the federal government’s National Adaptation Platform, and on several expert committees advising public policy. He is also a member of the boards of directors of Génome Québec, Calcul Québec, the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium, ClimAtlantic and START International.
Speaker: Suraje Dessai, Climate Change Adaptation, University of Leeds
Suraje Dessai is Professor of Climate Change Adaptation at the University of Leeds. His interdisciplinary research lays at the interface between climate science and decision science, particularly on decision making under deep uncertainty, perception of climate risks and the science-policy interface in climate change impacts, adaptation and services. Suraje Dessai was Lead Author for the Working Group I contribution to the IPCC AR6 (chapter on Climate change information for regional impact and for risk assessment), as well as Lead Author for the Working Group II contribution to the IPCC AR5 (chapter on Foundations for decision making). He is a member of the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change
Speaker: Suraje Dessai, Climate Change Adaptation, University of Leeds
Suraje Dessai is Professor of Climate Change Adaptation at the University of Leeds. His interdisciplinary research lays at the interface between climate science and decision science, particularly on decision making under deep uncertainty, perception of climate risks and the science-policy interface in climate change impacts, adaptation and services. Suraje Dessai was Lead Author for the Working Group I contribution to the IPCC AR6 (chapter on Climate change information for regional impact and for risk assessment), as well as Lead Author for the Working Group II contribution to the IPCC AR5 (chapter on Foundations for decision making). He is a member of the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change
Speaker: Giulia Galluccio, Euro-Mediterranean
Center on Climate Change (CMCC)
Giulia Galluccio is the Director of the Information Systems for Climate Science and Decision-Making Division at the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC). In her role, she oversees the interface between CMCC’s scientific knowledge and decision-making by transforming complex climate data and evidence into actionable information, through the development of innovative information systems and data visualization tools for user-friendly climate data analytics and scientific research.
On the other hand, the ISCD division provides policy-makers and corporate actors with strategic advice for informed decision-making on priorities and solutions in the field of climate change: from scientific consultancy to policy support and development and from stakeholder outreach and engagement to capacity building for both public and private organisations.
Speaker: Giulia Galluccio, Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC)
Giulia Galluccio is the Director of the Information Systems for Climate Science and Decision-Making Division at the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC). In her role, she oversees the interface between CMCC’s scientific knowledge and decision-making by transforming complex climate data and evidence into actionable information, through the development of innovative information systems and data visualization tools for user-friendly climate data analytics and scientific research. On the other hand, the ISCD division provides policy-makers and corporate actors with strategic advice for informed decision-making on priorities and solutions in the field of climate change: from scientific consultancy to policy support and development and from stakeholder outreach and engagement to capacity building for both public and private organisations.
Speaker: Svitlana
Krakovska
Ukrainian
Hydrometeorological Institute
Dr Svitlana Krakovska, Head of the Applied Climatology Laboratory in the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Institute of the State Service of Emergencies of Ukraine and National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Head of the delegation of Ukraine to IPCC since 2013, RE of IPCC SR1.5, LA of WGI AR6. In Feb 2021 by decree of the President of Ukraine, Dr. Krakovska has got a state award of The Order of Princess Olga of Third Class for her contribution to scientific activities in Antarctica and on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Ukrainian Antarctic Station "Akademik Vernadsky". She is experienced in the processing GCM and RCM data for the whole of Ukraine and its specific regions (natural reserves, river basins, administrative regions, etc.) for recent and future climate changes based on the multi-model ensemble approach; in verification and bias correction of climate model results; and in calculation and analysis of specific climate characteristics (indices) for application to different sectors (energy, water resources, tourism, agriculture, biodiversity, forest vulnerability, risk of wildfire, etc.).
Speaker: Svitlana Krakovska Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Institute
Dr Svitlana Krakovska, Head of the Applied Climatology Laboratory in the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Institute of the State Service of Emergencies of Ukraine and National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Head of the delegation of Ukraine to IPCC since 2013, RE of IPCC SR1.5, LA of WGI AR6. In Feb 2021 by decree of the President of Ukraine, Dr. Krakovska has got a state award of The Order of Princess Olga of Third Class for her contribution to scientific activities in Antarctica and on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Ukrainian Antarctic Station "Akademik Vernadsky". She is experienced in the processing GCM and RCM data for the whole of Ukraine and its specific regions (natural reserves, river basins, administrative regions, etc.) for recent and future climate changes based on the multi-model ensemble approach; in verification and bias correction of climate model results; and in calculation and analysis of specific climate characteristics (indices) for application to different sectors (energy, water resources, tourism, agriculture, biodiversity, forest vulnerability, risk of wildfire, etc.).
Speaker: Petra Manderscheid,
JPI
Climate Central Secretariat
Petra Manderscheid is the Executive Director at the Central Secretariat of the Joint Programming Initiative Connecting Climate Knowledge for Europe (JPI Climate). She set up the Brussels office in 2014 to ensure the overall management of the intergovernmental initiative with a small team hosted by the Belgium Ministry of Science (BELSPO). Initially trained in economic and social administration in France, UK and Germany, Petra had worked before in politics within the European Parliament as attaché of a Member in the Committee of Industry, Transport and Research during the legislative process of the European Research Framework Programme (Horizon 2020).
Speaker: Petra Manderscheid, JPI Climate Central Secretariat
Petra Manderscheid is the Executive Director at the Central Secretariat of the Joint Programming Initiative Connecting Climate Knowledge for Europe (JPI Climate). She set up the Brussels office in 2014 to ensure the overall management of the intergovernmental initiative with a small team hosted by the Belgium Ministry of Science (BELSPO). Initially trained in economic and social administration in France, UK and Germany, Petra had worked before in politics within the European Parliament as attaché of a Member in the Committee of Industry, Transport and Research during the legislative process of the European Research Framework Programme (Horizon 2020).
Speaker: María J. Sanz
Basque
Centre of Climate Change
María J. Sanz is Scientific Director at the Basque Centre of Climate Change (BC3), a Research Centre based in the Basque Country. BC3 aims to contribute to long term research on climate change, while emphasising the bridging of scales and scientific languages, to support policy and decision-making in economically efficient and socially equitable ways. Her own research agenda focuses on effective land use decisions, the optimal allocation of land resources for sustainable and efficient development.
Prior to joining the BC3, she was UNREDD Programme Coordinator at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Scientific Director of the I2C2, and Senior Officer at the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC), supporting Land Use, land Use Change and Forestry, Agriculture and REDD+ negotiations up to 2011.
Speaker: María J. Sanz Basque Centre of Climate Change
María J. Sanz is Scientific Director at the Basque Centre of Climate Change (BC3), a Research Centre based in the Basque Country. BC3 aims to contribute to long term research on climate change, while emphasising the bridging of scales and scientific languages, to support policy and decision-making in economically efficient and socially equitable ways. Her own research agenda focuses on effective land use decisions, the optimal allocation of land resources for sustainable and efficient development.
Prior to joining the BC3, she was UNREDD Programme Coordinator at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Scientific Director of the I2C2, and Senior Officer at the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC), supporting Land Use, land Use Change and Forestry, Agriculture and REDD+ negotiations up to 2011.