As extreme climate events intensify, addressing their impact on the populations and built environment has never been more critical. We collaborated with the ZERO Institute to host a panel, “Energy and Climate conversations: Bridging Ideas for Disaster Resilience,” on 20th February 2025 at Somerville College. Nethmi J. Kariyawasam, DPhil candidate in Geography and the Environment summarizes the discussion here.
The event commenced with a keynote address by Dr. Jesus Lizana, Associate Professor at Engineering Science. His address highlighted the impacts of weather events and right steps towards climate resilience, setting the stage for an evening of insightful dialogue. Following the keynote, Dr. Matthew Free, Director at Arup leading the Natural Hazard and Risk Management team for the UKIMEA region, shared key insights from his 30 years of experience in the industry. He introduced the city resilience framework, which enables cities to respond and adapt to extreme events and underlying stresses. His presentation included case studies from Madagascar, showcasing practical climate risk assessment methods and infrastructure adaptation strategies in vulnerable regions.
Panel Discussion: Bridging Academia, Industry, and Policy
A dynamic panel discussion followed, featuring a distinguished group of experts, including Dr. Jesus Lizana, Dr. Matthew Free, Dr. Rozana Himaz (Chair of Research at UCL’s Institute for Risk and Disaster Reduction), and Anna Beswick (Policy Fellow at the Grantham Research Institute at LSE) and the session was moderated by Nethmi J Kariyawasam, a DPhil researcher at Oxford. The discussion explored some critical issues on the gaps in current resilience strategies, the role of research in disaster resilience, and how policy frameworks can embed resilience into infrastructure planning.
As an economist, Dr. Rozana Himaz brought in an academic perspective, emphasizing how research can better shape resilient design by improving the methods in assessing the vulnerabilities and bridging data gaps. She also briefly addressed the challenges of financing adaptation projects. Meanwhile, Anna Beswick provided policy insights, discussing the challenges and opportunities in driving climate adaptation and scaling resilience efforts through effective governance.
Engaging the Audience: Q&A and Networking
The interactive discussion continued with a Q&A, where some questions focused on challenges in financing resilience projects prioritising people and leveraging emerging technologies for climate adaptation. The seminar concluded with a networking session, allowing attendees the opportunity to build connections and explore potential collaborations.
A Collaborative Effort Toward Resilience
Organised as a collaboration between the ZERO institute and the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development (OICSD), this event reflected on the importance of cross-disciplinary expertise to advance conversations in climate resilience.
Beyond critical discussions, the “Energy and Climate Conversations” seminar also inspired collective insights that could shape the future of disaster resilience. As cities and communities worldwide continue to face the challenges of climate extremes, events that bring together diverse expertise act as catalysts for collective action, driving resilience and sustainable adaptation.
Picture courtesy: India Education