Hans Joachim Schellnhuber GER
Climate Physicist and Policy Advisor
Summary
Leading theoretical physicist specialising in complex systems and climate science.
Founded and directed the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research from 1992 to 2018.
Chaired the German Advisory Council on Global Change, advising the government on sustainability.
Senior climate advisor to the European Union, the German Chancellor, and Pope Francis.
Work focuses on understanding climate risks and guiding urgent global policy responses.
Hans Joachim Schellnhuber is a distinguished theoretical physicist specialising in complex systems and nonlinearity, with a career dedicated to advancing climate science and its global implications. He is widely recognised as a pioneering figure in the study of climate dynamics and the risks posed by human-induced global warming.
He founded the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in 1992, serving as its director until 2018. Under his leadership, PIK became one of the world’s foremost institutions for climate research, integrating interdisciplinary approaches to understand climate change impacts and inform policy. He also served as chair of the German Advisory Council on Global Change, providing strategic advice on environmental and sustainability challenges to the German government.
Beyond Germany, Hans has been an influential senior climate advisor to key global leaders, including the European Union, the German Chancellor, and Pope Francis. His expertise has helped shape international climate policies and advocacy, emphasising the urgent need for systemic transformation to address the existential threats posed by climate change.
Climate change is now reaching the end-game, where very soon humanity must choose between taking unprecedented action, or accepting that it has been left too late and bear the consequences.
