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The Forest and the Trees: Measuring the Cost of Modern Development

What does it mean to respond to climate risk?

In the past decade, climate risk has evolved from a problem existing within the physical sciences to one that affects almost every economic sector. Industries are now well-aware that climate change poses major challenges in the form of economic, social and governance risks.

Governments, businesses and other organisations understand the need to act. Many are already reducing their carbon footprint. They are also acutely aware of the pressing need to protect their own operations and physical assets from current and future climate impacts. Climate-related reporting and regulatory requirements also call for greater climate knowledge and awareness. The way forward is appropriate mitigations and actions to address risk, as well as investment in adaptation and resiliency strategies.

The ICRR brings together a unique blend of expertise in climate science, behavioural science, economic science, law and governance in order to help industry action these changes.

Our team investigates climate risks across governments and industries. This includes not only identifying and measuring risks, but also how they will play out. We then develop specific advice on how to approach and manage these risks. 

At ICRR, we translate and communicate climate science so that it is accessible and usable by industry leaders and their stakeholders. We also help facilitate climate-risk decision-making with key governance and assurance guidance.

Research impact

How Australian and Pacific universities are collaborating for COP31

If Australia secures its bid to host COP31 with Pacific island nations, it will be one of the largest and most significant diplomatic events in the country's history. This briefing note, co-authored by the ¹úÃñ²ÊƱ Institute for Climate Risk & Response and the COP31 Universities Alliance, outlines everything you need to know about COP31 and the pivotal role Australia and Pacific nations could play as global climate leaders.
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Working with uncertainty in climate planning and adaptation

Climate model simulations provide insights into potential future scenarios, each with varying levels of uncertainty. This briefing note, developed in collaboration with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes, explores the critical role of uncertainty in climate projections for informed decision-making and effective adaptation planning.
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Key themes

Creating climate translators

Climate risk has impacts at local and global scales. It affects socio-economic activity at the  individual, organisation,  government to global body levels. Communicating with such a diverse group of decision-makers presents considerable challenges. A key objective of the Institute is the   establishment and training of climate translators – a new group of professionals who are equipped to translate complex climate information compiled from observations, meteorological reanalyses, and near and long-term model predictions into accessible and practicable information for non-expert users and decision-makers. 

Linking behavioural science, climate science and action

Improving climate risk management requires a deep understanding of human behaviour. To date the behavioural sciences have had limited impact on the development of climate models. Research at the ICRR will focus on closing this gap by working on methods to link established models of human behaviour with models of how our climate will evolve. This approach affords more detailed predictions about consumer behaviour, business decision-making and the impacts of policy innovation in the face of our changing climate. 

Providing a holistic approach to addressing climate risk

Mandated and voluntary reporting requirements are increasingly focused on how industry responds to climate risks. The expectation is that industry adopts an informed and comprehensive approach that considers climate risks as impacting social, environmental, and economic issues. Addressing these various needs and expectations is complex and demanding but is now an essential facet of maintaining the ‘social license to operate’ and impacts the bottom line. Drawing on its considerable expertise across science, business, legal and human rights and environmental disciplines the Institute will aim to progress research in this area that can be translated into accessible and holistic advice for industry and government. It will also be used to inform the content and design of professional education and training products.

Recent publications

    • André, R., Bradbury, H., Grant, D., Hastings, B., Hoffman, A. J., Jennings, P. D., Nyberg, D., & Wright, C. (2025). Climate Action Research: What's Holding Us Back? Journal of Management Inquiry.
    • Daiiani M; Sweetser Kyburz P; Stanley S; Van Rooy D; Caldwell S, 2025, 'Gameful interventions for pro-environmental attitude change', International Journal of Human Computer Studies, 196,
    • Man, X. and Tang, Q., 2024. Tail risk driven by investment losses and exogenous shocks. ASTIN Bulletin: The Journal of the IAA, 54(3), pp.712-737.
    • Mede, N. G., Cologna, V., Berger, S., Besley, J., Brick, C., Joubert, M., Maibach, E. W., Mihelj, S., Oreskes, N., Schäfer, M. S., van der Linden, S., & TISP Consortium. (2025). Perceptions of science, science communication, and climate change attitudes in 68 countries – The TISP dataset. Scientific Data, 12, 114.
    • Richardson D; Hobeichi S; Sweet L-B; Rey-Costa E; Abramowitz G; Pitman AJ, 2025, 'Predicting Australian energy demand variability using weather data and machine learning', Environmental Research Letters, 20,
    • Stanley SK; Leviston Z; Hogg TL; Walker I, 2025, 'The various forms of anger about climate change in Australia and their relations with self-reported actions, intentions, and distress', Journal of Environmental Psychology, 101,
    • Szollosi, A., Wang-Ly, N., & Newell, B. R. (2025). Nudges for people who think. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review.
    • Akter, S., Babu, M. M., Hani, U., Sultana, S., Bandara, R., & Grant, D. (2024). Unleashing the power of artificial intelligence for climate action in industrial markets. Industrial Marketing Management, 117, 92–113.
    • Avanzi, B., Li, Y., Wong, B., & Xian, A. (2024). Ensemble distributional forecasting for insurance loss reserving. Scandinavian Actuarial Journal, 2024(1), 1–42.
    • Chen, A., Gerick, L., & Tang, Q. (2024). Strategic timing of corporate social responsibility investments under reputational risk. Risk Sciences, 1, 100008.
    • Chua, W. F., Fiedler, T., & Boedker, C. (2024). Projecting, infrastructuring and calculating: From an in vitro to an in vivo carbon market. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 112, 101549.
    • Davies, C. A., & Stanley, S. K. (2024). Untangling the dairy paradox: How vegetarians experience and navigate the cognitive dissonance aroused by their dairy consumption. Appetite, 203, 107692.
    • Doell, K. C., Todorova, B., Vlasceanu, M., et al. (2024). The International Climate Psychology Collaboration: Climate change-related data collected from 63 countries. Scientific Data, 11, 1066.
    • Fiedler, T., Wood, N., Grose, M. R., & Pitman, A. J. (2024). Storylines: A science-based method for assessing and measuring future physical climate-related financial risk. Accounting and Finance.
    • Filelis-Papadopoulos, C. K., Kirshner, S. N., & O’Reilly, P. (2024). Sustainability with Limited Data: A Novel Predictive Analytics Approach for Forecasting CO2 Emissions. Information Systems Frontiers, 1-25.
    • Ghasemi, O., Cologna, V., Mede, N., Stanley, S., Strahm, N., Ross, R., Alfano, M., Kerr, J., Berger, S., Marques, M., Besley, J., Brick, C., Joubert, M., Maibach, E., Mihelj, S. I., Newell, B., Oreskes, N., & Schäfer, M. (2024). Investigating the trust gap between scientists and climate scientists in 68 countries. OSF Preprints.
    • Ghasemi, O., & Newell, B. R. (2024). Evaluating the impact of climate risk scores on property purchase decisions. SSRN Preprint.
    • Hay, D., Harding, N., Redmayne, N. B., Khan, J., Singh, H., Sultana, N., & You, J. (2024). Comments on recent International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants exposure drafts regarding sustainability assurance and the use of external experts. Accounting & Finance.
    • Hogg, T. L., Stanley, S. K., & O’Brien, L. V. (2024). Validation of the Hogg Climate Anxiety Scale. Climatic Change, 177, 86.
    • Huang, W., Nguyen, J., Tseng, C. L., Chen, W., & Kirshner, S. N. (2024). Pride or guilt? Impacts of consumers’ socially influenced recycling behaviors on closed-loop supply chains. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, 26(6), 2067-2084.
    • Kim, I., Stanley, S. K., Jylhä, K. M., & Badullovich, N. (2024). Limited and mixed evidence for system-sanctioned change to protect the environment: A replication study. International Review of Social Psychology, 37(1), 16.
    • Liu, H., & Tang, Q. (2024). Modeling and pricing credit risk with a focus on recovery risk. Journal of Banking & Finance, 170, 107317.
    • McDonald, M., Park, S., Anantharajah, K., Burke, A., Celermajer, D., Evans, M. C., Eckersley, R., Gulliver, R., McNaught, R., Morgan, W., Ruwet, M., Symons, J., Schlosberg, D., & Vogler, A. (2024). Ecological crises and ecopolitics research in Australia. Australian Journal of Politics and History. Advance online publication.
    • Mu, M., Sabot, M. E., Ukkola, A. M., Rifai, S. W., De Kauwe, M. G., Hobeichi, S., & Pitman, A. J. (2024). Examining the role of biophysical feedbacks on simulated temperature extremes during the Tinderbox Drought and Black Summer bushfires in southeast Australia. Weather and Climate Extremes, 45, 100703.
    • Neal, T. (2024). Estimating the effectiveness of forest protection using regression discontinuity. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, 127, 103021.
    • Pitman, A. J., Saribatir, E., Greenhill, C., Green, S., Pitman, S. J., & Fiedler, T. (2024). Linking physical climate risk with mandatory business risk disclosure requirements. Environmental Research Letters, 19.
    • Raupach, T. H., Soderholm, J. S., & Aldridge, J. (2024). Fostering Science–Industry Connections in Australia’s Severe Storm Science Community. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 105(3), E559-E566.
    • Rey-Costa, E., Elliston, B., Green, D., & Abramowitz, G. (2023). Firming 100% renewable power: Costs and opportunities in Australia's National Electricity Market. Renewable Energy, 219, 119416.
    • Stanley, S. K., Jylhä, K. M., Leviston, Z., & Walker, I. (2024). Is conservative opposition to climate change threat-based? Articulating an integrated threat model of climate change attitudes. British Journal of Social Psychology, 63(2), 879-893.
    • Stanley, S. K., Heffernan, T., Macleod, E., Lane, J., Walker, I., Evans, O., Greenwood, L., Kurz, T., Calear, A. L., Reynolds, J., Cruwys, T., Christensen, B. K., Sutherland, S., & Rodney, R. M. (2024). Solastalgia following the Australian summer of bushfires: Qualitative and quantitative insights about environmental distress and recovery. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 95, 102273.
    • Teckentrup, L., De Kauwe, M. G., Pitman, A. J., WÃ¥rlind, D., Ukkola, A. M., & Smith, B. (2024). Resolving uncertainty in the response of Australia's terrestrial carbon cycle to projected climate change. Geophysical Research Letters, 51(22), e2024GL111398.
    • Truong, C., Malavasi, M., & Goldstein, M. A. (2024). Timing is (almost) everything: Real options, climate adaptation, extreme value theory, and flood risk management. Journal of Environmental Management. ¹úÃñ²ÊƱ Business School Research Paper, Forthcoming.
    • Truong, C., Malavasi, M., Li, H., et al. (2024). Optimal dynamic climate adaptation pathways: A case study of New York City. Annals of Operations Research.
    • Wang, L., Abramowitz, G., Wang, Y.-P., Pitman, A., & Viscarra Rossel, R. (2024). An ensemble estimate of Australian soil organic carbon using machine learning and process-based modelling. EGUsphere [Preprint].
    • Batcup, C., Breth-Petersen, M., Dakin, T., Barratt, A., McGain, F., Newell, B. R., & Pickles, K. (2023). Behavioural change interventions encouraging clinicians to reduce carbon emissions in clinical activity: A systematic review. BMC Health Services Research, 23(1).
    • Balaguer-Mercado, A., Kirshner, S. N., & Tseng, C. L. (2023). Sustainable Supplier Selection under Financial Hardships: The Conflicting Impact of Spatial and Temporal Psychological Distances. Sustainability, 15(12), 9561.
    • Collier, B., Huber, T., Jaspersen, J. G., & Richter, A. (2023). Homeowners' willingness to hedge flood risks as prices increase. Available at SSRN 4635177,
    • Newell, B. R. (2023). Strengthening psychological science for optimal climate communication and action policies. One Earth, 6(4), 341–342.

Contact us

Visit the ICRR team page to find out more about ICRR staff and their research interests.
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