Speaker Biographies
Find out more about those speaking at The Impact of climate change and sustainable development on asset management event.
To find out more about this event visit the events calendar page.
Dr Swenja Surminski, Association of British Insurers Policy Adviser Climate Change
Swenja is advising the ABI on climate change issues, including mitigation and adaptation. Key areas of work are climate impacts (incl. flooding, storms, heatwaves and health issues), greenhouse gas emissions, and carbon commerce. She has co-ordinated the ABI’s response to the 2007 summer floods in the UK and sits on various research steering groups.
Prior to taking up this role in April 2007, Swenja was working in the Risk Management division of insurance broker Marsh McLennon and in the Geoscience Team at Munich Reinsurance Company. Swenja received a PhD in Economics/Political Science from Hamburg University for her work on ‘Climate Change and the Insurance Industry’ in 2000.
Robin Mortimer
Robin Mortimer took up his post as Director for Rural Affairs, Land Use and Climate Change Adaptation in Defra in October 2007. Previously he was Deputy Director in the Office of Climate Change, where he led work on the Climate Change Bill.
Robin joined the Department of the Environment in 1994, having graduated in Modern History from Queen’s College Oxford and taken an MSc in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. His civil service career has included spells as Private Secretary to John Prescott and later Alastair Darling, and a period at the Department for International Development. He has spent time outside Whitehall as an operational manager in an NHS Trust in South London. More recently he was head of Defra’s Rural Strategy Division.
Robin is married with two young children. He enjoys running - cross country and half marathons in particular!
Martin Crouch
Martin Crouch is Director of European Strategy and Environment. He leads the team which provides Ofgem’s input into developing genuinely competitive and sustainable European gas and electricity markets and facilitating the transition to a low carbon energy sector.
He joined Ofgem as Director, Electricity Distribution in January 2003. He was responsible for the fourth electricity distribution price review which introduced new regulatory mechanisms, provided for significant increases in investment and increased emphasis on outputs and environmental incentives. He oversaw the introduction of annual cost reporting after the review and has directed reviews of charging, competition in connections and distributed energy.
Prior to joining Ofgem, Martin worked for an electricity company on commercial, financial and regulatory issues, including the sales of two British distribution and supply businesses and the renegotiation of financial arrangements for a power station joint venture. Before that, he was an economic consultant at National Economic Research Associates (NERA) working primarily on regulatory and industry restructuring projects in the energy sector.