Dr Robin Wyatt’s professional interest in environmental issues connects strongly with his people-related expertise. His work takes place at the interface between planet Earth and the societies that populate her. He is particularly concerned about climate change, which has already begun harming poorer countries before others, thereby posing a great threat to international development. In these parts of the world, greater numbers are exposed and defenceless, such as those who live in sprawling slums that spill even onto vulnerable floodplains and those who live on small islands just a metre or two above sea level. These people are less likely to have a safety net in the form of insurance, savings and alternative livelihood possibilities.

When disaster strikes, the damage is not only environmental, but by extension it is also social, economic and political as pressures on natural resources become compounded. Spin-off effects, such as in the form of increased migration and water-related disputes, could very easily lead to conflicts in future, perhaps even violent clashes. There is therefore a clear need, as is increasingly being recognised, to incorporate climate change into the development agenda.

To contribute towards meeting this need, Robin is able to conduct research into the sensitivity, vulnerability and adaptive capacity of human systems to environmental change.