Paul Watkiss - Grantham Research Institute on climate change and the environment

About

Paul Watkiss is a leading adaptation expert, with over 25 years of multi-disciplinary experience in the planning, policy, economics and financing of adaptation. He is the director of a small research consultancy that undertakes academic research and policy analysis on adaptation.

Paul is one of the lead authors on the Finance chapter of the UNEP Adaptation Gap Report and led the analysis of recent adaptation finance gap assessments. He is a co-director of LSE’s ATTENUATE project, leading the development of the UK Adaptation Investment Framework.

Background

Paul has led the development of climate change risk and adaptation assessment methods. He was involved in the first, second and third UK Climate Change Risk Assessments (CCRA), leading the development of the CCRA3 methodology and authoring a report on the economic costs of climate change and the costs of benefits of adaptation in the UK. He has contributed to a series of European research projects (MEDIATION, ECONADAPT, COACCH, ACCREU) on the economics of climate change and the costs and benefits of adaptation, including decision making under uncertainty. He has also led numerous studies on the costs and benefits of adaptation for UK Government, the Climate Change Committee, the European Environment Agency, the European Commission, the OECD and the UNFCCC.

Paul has extensive experience in the global south, supporting the development of adaptation investment frameworks, and developing finance proposals for multiple countries, with applied expertise of adaptation planning, design and financing. He has led country studies on the economics of climate change and adaptation in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nepal, Rwanda, and Tanzania.

Paul has worked as an advisor to Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the Climate Change Committee, the European Commission, the European Investment Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank, the OECD, the UNFCCC and the Green Climate Fund.

Research interests

The economic impacts of climate change.
The economics of adaptation.
The financing of adaptation.
Climate change and development.