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Supernumerary Fellow Dr Ben Caldecott Appointed to Adaptation Committee by UK Government
29 April 2022
Dr Caldecott is Lombard Odier Associate Professor in Sustainable Finance and founding Director of the Oxford Sustainable Finance Group at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment. He is one of three new expert members to have been appointed to the Climate Change Committee’s (CCC) Adaptation Committee by the UK Government and Governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Adaptation Committee (AC) is comprised of experts in the fields of climate change impacts, science, environmental economics, conservation, public health and business, and provides independent, expert advice on preparing for and adapting to climate change to UK and devolved governments and parliaments.
Dr Caldecott, alongside his colleagues Professor Nathalie Seddon, a Fellow of Wadham College and a Senior Fellow at the Oxford Martin School, and Dr Swenja Surminski of LSE, will take up his role on 1 May 2022 for a three-year term. Dr Caldecott will lead on economics and natural capital within the Committee, a role previously undertaken by Ece Ozdemiroglu.
Speaking of the new appointments the Chair of the Adaptation Committee, Baroness Brown of Cambridge, said:
“I am delighted to welcome Professor Caldecott, Professor Seddon and Professor Surminski to the Adaptation Committee and congratulate them on their appointments. The growing recognition of the importance of adapting to climate change, and of the CCC’s work, was reflected in an impressive field of candidates for these roles. Ben, Nathalie and Swenja will help us build on the analysis underpinning the third UK Climate Change Risk Assessment, especially in the key areas of financing adaptation, the natural environment and business risk and preparedness. Their expertise will be invaluable as the UK seeks to shift the dial on improving its resilience to climate change.”
Of his new role, Dr Caldecott said:
“Adaptation investments reduce knowable (and unknowable) future damages from climate impacts, and adaptation investments today can deliver growth, improvements in productivity, and potential “win-wins” for climate mitigation and nature recovery. Integrating climate risk into economic and financial decision-making across society is essential for these productive and necessary investments in our national resilience to materialise.”
“I am excited to be working with my new colleagues on the Adaptation Committee on these and related topics. We know every future state has some greater combination of climate-related risk and we need to take action today to reduce and manage those risks. The work of the Adaptation Committee is a critical part of the UK response to understanding and planning for this darkening risk landscape.”
You can read more about the work of the Climate Change Committee here: https://www.theccc.org.uk/
Read the full press release on the government’s website.