The European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change, which began its second four-year term at the end of March 2026, will continue to be chaired by Ottmar Edenhofer, Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK).
Edenhofer was elected for the full term on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at the board’s meeting in Brussels. Laura Díaz Anadón (University of Cambridge) and Suraje Dessai (University of Leeds) have been elected Vice-Chairs for a two-year mandate.
The EU climate advisory board, established under the European Climate Law, consists of 15 high-level scientific experts covering a wide range of relevant fields. Highlights during the board’s first term have included scientific recommendations for an ambitious EU climate target for 2040, an analysis of the action needed to achieve climate neutrality, and a study on scaling up atmospheric carbon removals.
Edenhofer, who is also Professor for The Economics and Politics of Climate Change at the Technische Universität Berlin, commented on his re-election as Chair of the EU climate advisory board.
He said: “We are operating in a very different context from four years ago. With growing economic and geopolitical pressures, the Advisory Board will ensure its advice remains firmly grounded in science and supports Europe’s broader strategic priorities.”
In the coming months, the Advisory Board will define its priorities for 2026 and continue to deliver recommendations on key aspects of EU climate policy.
The Advisory Board gives independent advice and produces reports on EU policies, and their coherence with the Climate Law and the EU’s commitments under the Paris Agreement. It consists of 15 high-level scientific experts covering a wide range of relevant fields.
The other members of the Advisory Board in the second term are:
• Annela Anger-Kraavi – University of Cambridge
• Constantinos Cartalis – National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
• Suraje Dessai – University of Leeds’ School of Earth, Environment, and Sustainability
• Laura Díaz Anadón – University of Cambridge
• Vera Eory – Scotland’s Rural College
• Lena Kitzing – Technical University of Denmark
• Kati Kulovesi – University of Eastern Finland
• Lars J. Nilsson – Lund University
• Åsa Persson – KTH Royal Institute of Technology’s Climate Action Centre
• Keywan Riahi – International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis
• Jean-François Soussana – French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment
• Giorgio Vacchiano – University of Milan
• Detlef van Vuuren – PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency
• Zinta Zommers – University of Toronto.