We are a specialist climate adaptation consultancy that is headquartered in the UK, with a global reach. We deliver technical assistance in a streamlined, cost-effective and time-sensitive way, to meet the needs of our clients.
Our team
The Adapt40 team has extensive expertise in Climate Change, Disaster Risk and Resilience, delivering technical assistance for International Financial Institutions, National/Local Government and UN agencies across Europe, Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Caribbean.
In 2018, 2040 was the year that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted we would reach human-induced global warming of 1.5°C. More recent predictions indicate we could reach that threshold before 2030. Climate action needs to be fast-tracked, and Adapt40's focus is to support that transformation.
Adapt40’s network-based model enables the team to better incorporate local expertise into project delivery. This provides a responsive and agile offering to our clients. The Adapt40 team includes specialists from the following disciplines:
Climate and Disaster Resilience
Adaptation Planning
Resilient Infrastructure
Stakeholder Engagement and Capacity Development
Climate Finance
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Ben Andrews
Climate Resilience Lead and Founder
Climate Adaptation and ResilienceBen has 16+ years of experience in climate risk and adaptation and holds an MA in Disasters, Adaptation & Development from King’s College London as well as a BSc in Environmental Geosciences.
Since founding Adapt40, Ben has led a wide range of climate adaptation, disaster risk reduction, loss & damage and resilience projects. With a wealth of experience, including national and sectoral adaptation planning, climate and disaster risk assessments and knowledge product and guidance document development.
Current clients include UNDP, UN-Habitat, World Bank, EBRD, C40 Cities, GIZ, DFAT and FCDO on projects across Europe, Africa, the Caribbean and Asia-Pacific.
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Jessica Tinkler
Senior Consultant and Head of Operations
Climate Adaptation and Loss and DamageJess has an MSc in Climate Change: Impacts, Adaptation and Mitigation and provides clients with substantial experience in climate risk and adaptation, loss and damage (L&D), nature-based solutions and biodiversity, GEDSI and monitoring and evaluation.
She has managed projects on CRVAs, Adaptation and L&D Action Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation for Adaptation and L&D and Project Design for the Adaptation Fund and Green Climate Fund.
Current clients include the ASEAN Secretariat, UNDP, UNIDO, Gov of Saint Lucia, UK Local Authorities. Her work has been applied across Africa, Central and South East Asia, the Caribbean, Middle East, and the Balkans.
She is proud of her recent work on Operationalising the ASEAN Centre for Climate Change (ACCC)
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Janeil Johnston
Senior Consultant
Climate Data Science and GISJaneil is a climate data scientist and GIS specialist with an MSc in Applied Meteorology and Climate with Management and a BScE in Geological Engineering.
She has extensive experience in climate policy and adaptation for Small Island Developing States and has supported adaptation communications, national communications, local area and sectoral adaptation plans, and Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessments (CRVAs). She is proficient in GIS, Climatology, Climate Change Analysis and Weather Data Analysis.
Key clients include UN-Habitat, UNDP, and the Government of Montenegro. With experiences across the Caribbean, Balkans, Eastern Africa, and Southeast Asia.
She wants to highlight the Saint Lucia Loss and Damage Needs Assessment and Strategy and Action Plan
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Anastasia Chau
Climate Adaptation and Resilience Consultant
Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate ResearchAnastasia is about to complete her PhD in Disaster Risk Reduction from UCL, where she also completed an MSc in Risk, Disasters and Resilience. She has research and consulting experiences in disaster risk reduction, community resilience, climate change adaptation, early warning systems and risk communication.
She is currently supporting Adapt40’s work on resilient infrastructure in South and Southeast Asia, risk assessment activities in Central Asia, and national adaptation planning projects in Eastern Europe. She is fluent in French and English. Through her PhD research, she brings detailed knowledge of early warning systems, including community-based early warning systems. She has on site experience in the UK, India and Japan.
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Sebastian Mortimer
Climate Adaptation and Resilience Consultant
Climate Resilience and Spatial Risk AnalysisSeb has an MASc in Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus on Systemic Climate Resilience, Climate Mobility, and Climate Justice, and holds a BA in Architecture. He has experience in urban resilience, climate displacement, urban planning, design thinking, and spatial data analysis.
At Adapt40, Seb has worked extensively on Multilayered Vulnerability Assessments, Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessments, concept note development, GIS mapping, and adaptation pathway planning.
Key clients at Adapt40 include UN-Habitat, UNDP, UNIDO, the Government of Montenegro, UK local authorities, and international CSOs. Seb has worked across Eastern Africa, Central and Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, South America, Southeastern Europe, and the UK.
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Fabio Cresto Aleina
Climate Science and Policy Lead
Climatology and Climate PolicyFabio holds a PhD in climate science and specialises in adaptation policy, with a focus on science-informed adaptation strategies, climate risk and vulnerability assessments, and climate finance. He has led sectoral CRVAs, national climate plan development and costing, monitoring and evaluation frameworks, national climate finance strategies, and community-level adaptation strategies. Informing National Adaptation Plans, Nationally Determined Contributions, Biennial Transparency Reports, and climate finance investment roadmaps.
Working across Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America with UNDP, UNEP, UNICEF, GIZ, the World Bank, the Gates Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and international CSOs such as Global Citizen, the Global Climate and Health Alliance, and WaterAid.
Fabio is currently working on the Development of Zanzibar’s Health National Adaptation Plan
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Lee Lambert
Urban Resilience and Adaptation Finance
Lee has a master’s in Urban Strategies and Design from the University of Edinburgh. With over a decade of experience supporting climate adaptation, mitigation, and resilience planning across more than 35 countries.
His work focuses on research, action planning, and capacity development. Lee has worked on climate resilient urban infrastructure development projects in developing and least developed countries across Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Middle East for MDBs, IFIs, UN agencies, city networks organisations, bilateral institutions, and national governments.
Why the name, Adapt40 ?
Adapt - our team specialises in climate adaptation solutions. As climate change impacts accelerate, it is increasingly important that countries and communities adapt. This work is particularly important for the most vulnerable in our societies.
40 - back when our organisation was being formed, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted that we would reach human-induced global warming of 1.5°C in the year 2040. Unfortunately the science indicates that we will reach that threshold much sooner. Today, our name is a reminder that climate action needs to be fast-tracked, and Adapt40's focus is to support this transformation.
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Adapt40 was set up to address climate risk and the road to net zero is a key part of that. Whilst the organisation is more focused on climate adaptation, where possible the solutions we suggest have carbon reduction co-benefits. As such nature-based solutions (NbS) are always prioritised where applicable and implementable.
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For solutions that impact communities, Adapt40 will also stipulate the requirement for community engagement and buy-in, as well as incorporating local knowledge. Climate justice is a core tenet of Adapt40. Participative methods are always used by Adapt40 to identify risk, especially to identify drivers of vulnerability, e.g. unequal power structures, which inform the proposed resilience strengthening solutions. This is a critical part of developing inclusive strategies that integrate local knowledge to avoid maladaption and build resilience. As such, Adapt40 ensures these methods are developed in proposals and monitored during implementation and evaluation.
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With regards to Adapt40’s operational carbon footprint, we seek to always use carbon neutral, or low carbon solutions. Any project related transport is always done using public or active modes of transport where possible. For any emissions that are unavoidable, these are calculated (using CarbonFootprint’) and Adapt40 offsets them using GrowCleanAir (www.growcleanair.com) which are effective organisations at making sure funds are invested in actual carbon sinks. In addition, the projects they support are run by local people/farmers increasing the social value. We monitor our carbon emissions, electricity consumption and utilise renewable energy wherever possible and put strategies in places to reduce our impact on the environment and the climate crisis.
The way we work
Our values
Collaboration
Co-creative and participatory methods are always used. This is critical to develop inclusive strategies that integrate local knowledge to avoid maladaption and build resilience.
Impact
Positive, just and sustainable impact is at the heart of our decision making.
Climate Justice
There is no climate justice without social justice. Adapt40's mission is focused on tackling the climate and ecological crisis.
Positivity
Focus on enjoying the work we deliver and ensuring our collaborators are treated with kindness and respect at all times.