The Research Council of Norway has decided to award Climate Futures the renowned status of SFI, Centre for Research-based Innovation. 

SEVEN RESEARCH PARTNERS 

The centre Climate Futures is led by NORCE, and is made up of seven research partners and almost 30 user partners from business and industry. These represent the sectors of agriculture, renewable energy, disaster preparedness, shipping, insurance, finance, risk management services and public organisations.

‘This is a very promising project, where NHH participates in an exciting interdisciplinary cooperation with a group of very robust organisations. Climate Futures focuses on one of our time’s biggest social challenges, so this is both positive and important’ says NHH Rector Øystein Thøgersen. 

MANAGING RISK 

More extreme weather and related phenomena caused by climate change constitute a serious threat to the economy, our welfare and society overall. 

Climate Futures is to cooperate with partners from a number of sectors that are vulnerable to climate and weather extremes in order to create new solutions to predict and not least manage the climate risk from 10 days to 10 years ahead in.

‘This is fantastic news. We knew that the theme of Climate Futures was relevant to the times, and we are happy that the Research Council of Norway also sees that climate risk is an area that demands more efforts in terms of research. At NORCE and the Bjerknes Centre we have an extraordinary group of research players, companies and public agencies,’ says the head of the centre and climate researcher Erik Kolstad at NORCE and the Bjerknes centre. 

SHIPPING AND LOGISTICS 

Professor Roar Os Ådland at the Department of Business and Management Science is one of the NHH researchers who will work on Climate Futures. Professor Stein W Wallace from the Centre for Shipping and Logistics and Professor Linda Nøstbakken, associate professor Geir Berentsen and postdoctoral fellow Håkon Otneim, both from the Department of Business and Management Science, are also part of NHH’s group.

‘We look forward to cooperating with so many important research institutions and partners from business and industry. Participating in such a centre will significantly strengthen NHH's research in shipping, logistics, natural resources and insurance,’ says Ådland.

Climate Futures will make use of machine learning and advanced statistics to create algorithms which improve the quality of climate forecasts. One of the keys will be to improve knowledge of how climate variables such as precipitation, wind and temperatures interact, and to use this knowledge to better exploit the physical models. This work has been developed at the Bjerknes centre for years, in cooperation between climate researchers from NORCE, the University of Bergen (UiB) and the Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center (NERSC).  

PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PARTIES 

‘Climate Futures will raise awareness of climate risk, which almost all public and private sectors will have to take into account now and in future. We aim to build the foundation for this in cooperation with public and private parties. We look forward to getting started,’ says Trond Dokken, Executive Vice President of NORCE. 

Research partners in Climate Futures:

NHH / SNF, the University of Bergen (UiB), the Norwegian Computing Centre, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute and the Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center (NERSC). 

NORCE, UiB and NERSC are all partners at the Bjerknes Centre for climate research.

Companies and public agencies in Climate Futures: 

BKK, Golden Ocean, Gartnerhallen, Graminor, MOWI, StormGeo, Agder Energi, Tryg Insurance, the Norwegian Agrarian Association, Western Bulk, KLP, G2 Ocean, Safetec, Statkraft, Norsk Landbrukrådgiving, Vestland County Authority, Viken County Authority, Rogaland County Authority, all the county governors in Norway, represented by the County Governor of Vestland.