Official launch of the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy

27 January 2009   

A new UK centre to lead research on climate change economics and policy was launched today by the University of Leeds and the London School of Economics and Political Science.

The Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy (CCCEP) will be chaired by Lord Stern of Brentford, who was Head of the UK Government Economic Service between 2003 and 2007 and author of the highly influential report on ‘The Economics of Climate Change: The Stern Review’ in 2006.

Lord Stern said: “We are at a crucial stage in the battle to avoid the worst potential impacts of climate change, which could have devastating social and economic consequences for people around the world. I am determined that this Centre should generate rigorous and innovative research to inform public and private action. We really need to put our best researchers to work on the difficult problems that we face in substantially reducing emissions of greenhouse gases and preparing effectively to deal with those effects of climate change that we cannot now prevent.”

Professor Andy Gouldson, who is director of the Centre at the University of Leeds, said: “We know the climate is changing and that governments are adopting ambitious new policies in response. Some countries, communities, businesses and individuals will be more able to respond than others, both by reducing their own carbon footprint and by adapting to life in a changed climate. The Centre’s ambitious programme of research will build our understanding of how we can best reduce our impact on the climate as well as the climate's impact on us, so that everyone, and particularly the most vulnerable, can adapt to this changing world.”

Professor Judith Rees, who is director of the Centre at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), said: “The members of the Centre want to advance climate-change policy and increase the capacity of public and private decision-makers to respond to one of the most critical challenges facing the world today. The research carried out at the Centre should support a ‘new global deal' on climate change, through a formal state agreement and a wider set of actions worldwide, by improving both the evidence base and the tools and implementation strategies available to decision-makers.”

The Centre will have five research programmes:

• Developing climate science and economics;
• Climate-change governance for a new global deal;
• Adaptation to climate change and human development;
• Governments, markets and climate-change mitigation; and
• The Munich Re Programme: Evaluating the economics of climate risks and opportunities in the insurance sector.

The Centre is funded by a £5 million grant from the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). It also receives £3 million in support from Munich Re, one of the world’s leading reinsurance companies.

Professor Ian Diamond, chief executive of the ESRC, said: “The role of research in the array of issues surrounding climate change and its global impact is vital to how we plan for and combat the effects of such changes to the planet. The ESRC is delighted to be funding such an important Centre, which will provide rigorous, innovative research to inform and influence policy-making.”

Ernst Rauch, Head of Munich Re’s Corporate Climate Centre which co-ordinates the research co-operation between Munich Re and the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy, said: “Climate change is a central strategic topic for Munich Re. We have to master the risk side and therefore it is only logical that we should join forces with the pioneer in researching the economic impacts of the progressive warming of the atmosphere. At the same time, we see opportunities for us in addressing the substantial demand for insurance-based solutions stemming from the very different strategies necessary to mitigate and adapt to climate change and the ensuing challenges.”

Notes for Editors

1. The University of Leeds is one of the largest higher education institutions in the UK with more than 30,000 students from 130 countries. With a turnover approaching £450 million, Leeds is one of the top ten research universities in the UK, and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities.  
2. The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) studies the social sciences in their broadest sense, with an academic profile spanning a wide range of disciplines, from economics, politics and law, to sociology, information systems and accounting and finance. The School has an outstanding reputation for academic excellence and is one of the most international universities in the world. Its study of social, economic and political problems focuses on the different perspectives and experiences of most countries. From its foundation, LSE has aimed to be a laboratory of the social sciences, a place where ideas are developed, analysed, evaluated and disseminated around the globe.
3. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the UK's largest funding agency for research, data resources and postgraduate training relating to social and economic issues. It supports independent, high quality research which impacts on business, the public sector and the third sector. The ESRC’s planned total expenditure in 2008-09 is £203 million. At any one time, the ESRC supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic institutions and research policy institutes.
4. The Munich Re Group operates worldwide, turning risk into value. In the financial year 2007, it achieved a profit of €3,937 million, the highest since the company was founded in 1880, on premium income of approximately €37 billion. The Group operates in all lines of business, with around 43,000 employees at over 50 locations throughout the world and is characterised by particularly pronounced diversification, client focus and earnings stability. With premium income of around €21.5 billion from reinsurance alone, it is one of the world's leading reinsurers. Its primary insurance operations are mainly concentrated in the ERGO Insurance Group. With premium income of over €17 billion, ERGO is one of the largest insurance groups in Europe and Germany. It is the market leader in Europe in health and legal expenses insurance, and 34 million clients in over 30 countries place their trust in the services and security it provides. The global investments of the Munich Re Group amounting to €176 billion are managed by MEAG, which also makes its competence available to private and institutional investors outside the Group.