Climate Science Evidence for Policy Making – UK Perspectives

10 a.m., Friday January 23, 2009
National Center for Atmospheric Research
3450 Mitchell Lane, Foothills Lab 2, Room 1001

Those in the United Kingdom’s new lead department for climate change mitigation and international adaptation policy (Department of Energy and Climate Change – DECC) are responsible for gathering and presenting core climate science evidence that informs UK climate science policy. 

Chris Sear leads this small team of scientist-advisers and is responsible for DECC’s climate science research budget, which includes funding the bulk of research conducted by the Met Office Hadley Centre in their Integrated Climate Programme. With DECC’s lead, Her Majesty’s Government is striving to join-up across Whitehall to improve the policy direction of key climate research and better link its efforts with that of the wider academic community, including the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and other research councils (RCs). Among these joint initiatives are the NERC/Met Office Joint Climate Research Programme (JCRP) and RCUK’s new Living With Environmental Change (LWEC) initiative.

The UK is perhaps unique in delivering a significant, policy focussed and directed climate research programme, co-existing and working with looser, academic research. In his talk, Chris will outline some of the background to DECC’s work and explore some of the issues and sensitivities involved, whilst encouraging discussion on contrasts with activities in the US and how climate science evidence there feeds into policy.

About Chris Sear
Chris is currently Head of Climate Science in the Climate and Energy: Science and Analysis Team, in the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). His career has been essentially about delivering climate science, applied research and directed research programs, for his various employers. Chris is now charged with delivering DECC’s core climate change and observations research programme, including funding the bulk of the directed effort of the Met Office Hadley Centre; as well as delivering essential climate science evidence for UK government policy.

A climate modeller and sea ice specialist by training, Chris spent much of the 1980s in commercial consultancy (climate change, met-ocean statistics and modeling, Earth Observation [including SST and rainfall estimation] and Arctic science) for a variety of UK, European and U.S. clients; and in government service at the British Antarctic Survey.

Throughout the 1990s Chris worked to deliver EO technology transfer and seasonal forecasting in developing countries (mainly in Africa) for the UK government, in the Department for International Development, and other clients, including the World Bank.  Gradually concentrating more on climate change and development issues and on adaptation, risk and vulnerability, Chris moved in 2003 to work for the IPCC Working Group II and in late 2005, moved back to central government, in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). In late 2008, restructuring gave international climate change responsibilities to the newly formed department: DECC.