As part of their master’s coursework, students Isha Bhasin, Medha Manish, Emma Nijssen and Sekela Ombura partnered with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) to study the socio-economic benefits of climate services in the energy sector.
The findings of their work were included in the 2022 WMO State of Climate Services Report, which was launched on 11 October 2022. Given the magnitude of the positive response to the Report, the WMO raised the issue of the need for socio-economic assessments of climate services at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt this November to build a case for greater investments in climate services for energy in diverse markets.
"We are honoured to have been able to contribute to the WMO 2022 State of Climate Services Report. It has been a truly insightful and enriching experience learning more about the WMO's activities with climate services for energy", said the student team members.
The partnership was facilitated through the Master in International and Development Studies’s (MINT) Applied Research Project (ARP), a foundational part of the degree in which small student groups conduct policy-relevant research with policy-makers, practitioners and leaders in Geneva and beyond to answer pressing research questions of global concern.
Under the academic supervision of Dr Jérôme Duberry and Teaching Assistant Emanuele Zavanella, the students worked as graduate research consultants with Dr Veronica F. Grasso, Scientific and Programme Officer; Dr Hamid Bastani, Associate Project Officer; and Nakiete Msemo, Assistant Scientific Officer of the WMO. The project also owes its fruition to Faculty Lead for the Environment and Sustainability track, Denis Ruysschaert and Teaching Assistant Amal Shahid.
Pictured from left to right: Medha Manish, Emma Nijssen, Isha Bhasin and Sekela Ombura.