Lecture Slides (PDF)
Audio File -
LSE alumni are invited to the next talk, in Beijing, on the LSE China Lecture Series. The talk will take place at the Hilton Hotel on 25 November from 7:30pm. Registration is required in advance. See below.
Dr. Swenja Surminski, Senior Research Fellow, at LSE's Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment will speak on
Natural disasters in times of a changing climate - are we prepared? Reflections on risk management efforts in China and elsewhere
This talk will give an update on the latest natural disaster risk trends, losses and responses. In particular we will explore two key aspects:
-What is happening at the policy level - with 2015 potentially becoming a pivotal year for global disaster risk management efforts, with the UN's Sendai disaster risk management framework, the Sustainable Development Goals, and a possible climate change deal later this year in Paris.
-And how is the private sector responding to the rising risk levels - with a special focus on the role of insurance.
Event Details
Date and Time: 25 November, 7:30pm
Venue: Signature Ballroom, 3rd Floor, Beijing Hilton Hotel (Dongsanhuan)
Event: Refreshments (food and beverage) followed by lecture.
Registration: This is an LSE alumni event and registration is required in advance.
About the Speaker
Swenja is a Senior Research Fellow at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, part of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), as well as a member of the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy (CCCEP).
She is Programme Leader for the ‘climate risk, insurance and private sector’ work-stream at the institute, overseeing research projects from a multi-disciplinary field. Her research focuses on climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction with a special interest in the role of the private sector, particularly insurance and public-private partnerships as well as adaptation policy. Swenja is leading the institute’s research under the the EU’s FP7 ENHANCE project, currently conducting an analysis of the London Climate Change Partnership as well as investigating UK flood insurance developments. She was recently appointed lead author for the business and industry chapter of the UK Climate Change Risk Assessment. She is a Visiting Academic at the Bank of England and a contributing author to the ICCP. Swenja is the lead academic for a World Bank project on the benefits of Disaster Risk Management (DRM), working with the Overseas Development Institute to explore how the co-benefits of DRM measures can strengthen the economic case for investment. She has published widely and works closely with industry and policy makers at a global level, in a developing country context, across the EU and within the UK.
Prior to joining LSE in 2010 Swenja spent more than ten years in the insurance industry working on climate and risks management, including roles at Munich Re, Marsh Mc Lennon and the Association of British Insurers. Swenja was a Fulbright Scholar in the US, studying Environmental Economics and International Relations at the University of New Hampshire and received a PhD in Political Science from Hamburg University for her work on ‘Climate Change and the Insurance Industry’ in 2000.