From Risk Awareness to Real-World Action: Aligning Climate Adaptation Policy with Public Demand

Dr. Anthony Leiserowitz is the JoshAni-TomKat Professor at the Yale School of the Environment and Director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. He is an internationally recognized expert on public climate change beliefs, risk perceptions, policy support, and behavior, and the psychological, cultural, and political factors that shape them. He has published more than 450 scientific articles, chapters, and reports and has worked with the IPCC, the National Academy of Sciences, the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, the United Nations Development Program, the Gallup World Poll, and the World Economic Forum, among many others. He is also the host of Climate Connections, a daily podcast and radio program broadcast on nearly 800 frequencies nationwide.

Ravi Mahabir is the Vice President of Climate at Intact Financial Corporation, a global provider of property and casualty insurance founded on a belief that insurance is about people, not things. He leads the delivery of Intact’s climate strategy across its global operations. He partners closely with core functions - such as risk management and actuarial - to capture opportunities, embed climate into decision-making, advance climate scenario analysis and strengthen climate risk management. Ravi is a professional engineer and a certified risk manager with over 20 years experience.

Dr. Jennifer Carman is the Director of Survey Strategy at the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Her research interest is at the intersection of climate change adaptation and human behavior, focusing on how people can both protect themselves and advance the common good in the face of increasing climate change impacts. Her past work was in the energy sector as a program evaluation research analyst for energy utility and government clients. At YPCCC, she leads development of survey research on public attitudes, behaviors, and policy support regarding climate change both in the U.S. and globally.

Catherine Gamper leads the OECD’s work on Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience, overseeing a programme that supports governments in managing climate risks and developing and implementing increasingly ambitious adaptation policies. She has played a leading role in establishing climate adaptation as a strategic area of OECD policy engagement, creating and steering the OECD Task Force on Climate Change Adaptation, which brings together policymakers, experts and international organisations to advance adaptation policy and practice across countries.

An economist by training, Catherine has nearly two decades of experience working at the intersection of climate change, disaster risk management and public policy. Her work focuses on the economics of adaptation, resilience investment and public finance, and over the course of her career she has worked with governments across OECD and partner countries to help them strengthen their capacity to anticipate, manage and recover from climate-related risks.   

Prior to her current role, she led the OECD’s work on disaster risk prevention and resilience. Before joining the OECD, she worked at the World Bank on local governance and disaster risk management and conducted research on climate adaptation and environmental economics in Austria.   Catherine holds a PhD in Public Economics from the University of Innsbruck.

Jagan Chapagain is the Chief Executive Officer and Secretary General of the IFRC. He was appointed by the IFRC Governing Board in February 2020 and is based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Jagan has extensive experience in leading effective and principled humanitarian response around the world and has dedicated his life to helping empower local communities.

He brings decades of experience in building and leading inclusive teams and forging trustful partnerships to address global challenges, ranging from climate to health, and from migration to protection, gender, and inclusion. He has also championed policies and programmes that promote youth engagement and volunteering, and that strengthen localization and accountability in humanitarian action.

He began his humanitarian journey as a youth volunteer with the Nepal Red Cross and has extensive experience in, and broad knowledge of, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

Prior to being appointed Secretary General, he served as Under Secretary General for Programmes and Operations at the IFRC. He was also previously Chief of Staff and Regional Director for Asia Pacific, where he provided leadership during large-scale humanitarian crises and built resilient communities alongside National Societies and other partners.

An engineer by training, Jagan holds certificates in Leadership and Turnaround Management, Emerging Social Sector Leadership, and High Performance Boards.

A national of Nepal, he is fluent in Nepalese, English and Hindi and has basic knowledge of Urdu and Russian.

Jaime de Bourbon de Parme is the Director of the OECD Environment Directorate. He took up his duties on 5 January 2026, bringing more than two decades of leadership in international diplomacy, climate policy and sustainable development to the Organisation.