Chair
Monique KuglitschInnovation Management, Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI)
Dr. Monique Kuglitsch is the Innovation Manager at Fraunhofer HHI and she previously served as the Chair of the ITU/WMO Focus Group on AI for Natural Disaster Management. She previously managed operations for the ITU/WHO Focus Group on AI for Health. In her past role at the American Meteorological Society, M. Kuglitsch was the Lead Technical Editor for several journals (including the Journal of Hydrometeorology and Journal of Physical Oceanography) and the Senior International Outreach/Communications Specialist. As a researcher, M. Kuglitsch has investigated past climate change, extreme weather events, and regional climate model projections. M. Kuglitsch has experience in fluvial and limnological field work, geochemical laboratory methods, applied mathematics and statistics, greenhouse gas emissions, and climate.
Vice-Chairs (s)
Rakiya A. B. Babamaaji
Deputy Director at Strategic Space Applications Department, National Space Research and Development Agency, Nigeria
Dr. Rakiya holds a PhD in Geosciences and Civil Engineering from University of Missouri, USA, MSc in Environmental Resources Management from Lagos State University, Nigeria and MSc in Space Management from International Space University (ISU), Strasbourg, France. B.Tech. in Geology from Federal University of Technology Yola, Nigeria. Her PhD dissertation/research is on Lake Chad Basin hydrological analysis sponsored by NASRDA/UMKC/NSF/NASA. She is a member of the Team that drafted the Action Plan for the Restoration of the Lake Chad and also one of the team members that conducted Regional Risk and Vulnerability Assessment of Lake Chad Basin (Chad and Cameroun) sponsored by Early Warning Directorate, ECOWAS. A Member of Project Implementation Team (PIT) for Geo-referenced Infrastructure and Demographic Data for Development (GRID3) Nigeria. Presently, Dr. Rakiya is the Vice Chairman Africa Union Science and Technology Advisory Group on Disaster Risk Reduction (Af-STAG DRR) and member of the United Nations Disaster Risk Reduction Global Risk Assessment Framework (UNDRR-GRAF) Steering Group. Finally, an Assistant Professor, Institute of Space Science Engineering, African University of Science and Technology Abuja.
Sanjay K Agrawal
Deputy Director General - Disaster Management, Department of Telecommunications, India
Dr. Sanjay Agrawal, a gold medalist in Computer Science from IIT Delhi, serves as Deputy Director General (Disaster Management) in the Ministry of Communications, New Delhi. With extensive experience in Telecom, Road Infrastructure, and IT sectors, he specializes in Project Planning, Implementation, and Disaster Management. Passionate about disaster management, he led the pan-India implementation of the Early Warning Alert Dissemination system, which is a largest global implementation till date. Mr Agrawal is currently involved in developing the Next Generation unified Network for Public Protection and Disaster Relief Agencies. Recognized for his contributions, Mr. Agrawal has received prestigious awards including the Rashtriya Sanchar Seva Padak and the Vishishta Sanchar Seva Padak. Internationally, he represents India as an Expert Member in the International Standards Organization, contributing to the development of Global Intelligent Transport System Standards. He is also the Vice Chair of the ITU Focus Group on AI for DRR. He also holds membership in the Expert Advisory Group on Road Information Systems of CRRI, New Delhi. He has authored numerous national and international publications including the Times Group.
Stefan Uhlenbrook
Director Hydrology, Water and Cryosphere, WMO
Dr Stefan Uhlenbrook’ s main expertise includes water management, hydrological processes and modelling across scales (i.e., floods and droughts), and the water-energy-food-ecosystems nexus. He is a renown academic and has led/contributed to many projects in Africa, Asia, Europe and MENA that have demonstrated the impact of global changes on water, and they provided effective solutions to address these challenges through integrated approaches. He is experienced on translating science-based knowledge to effective policies, strategies and services that contribute to environmental, economic and societal sustainability.
Since September 2022, Stefan leads the Hydrology, Water and Cryosphere program of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), the UN Specialized Agency for Weather, Climate and Water. He is very exciting to contribute to the Organisation’s program and, among other things, strengthen the early warning systems for floods and droughts as well as water resources assessment and management worldwide. During 2019-2022, he has focused his interest to water and food system transformations to provide healthy and nutritious food for all while considering the vital role of water and ecosystems. Previously, he served as the director of water, food and ecosystems at IWMI (2019-2022, Sri Lanka), Coordinator of UNESCO’s World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP, 2015-2019, Italy), and the Deputy Director and acting Director of UNESCO-IHE (now IHE-Delft, Netherlands, 2005-2015). He has been a professor at IHE-Delft (2005 onwards) and Delft University of Technology (2009-2020), The Netherlands. He did his PhD (1999) and habilitation (2003) at the University of Freiburg, Germany.
Muralee Thummarukudy
Director, G20 Global Land Initiative, UNCCD
Dr. Thummarukudy brings to this position over three decades of global management experience in the UN and private sector.
An internationally renowned expert in disaster response, he played a key role in addressing the environmental aftermath of many major conflicts and disasters, implementing projects in over 35 countries. Before joining the United Nations, Dr. Thummarukudy served as Environmental Advisor to Shell Group in Southeast Asia and the Middle East.
Prior to his current assignment, Dr. Thummarukudy served as the Chief of the Disasters and Conflicts Programme at the United Nations Environment Programme. Dr. Thummarukudy has a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur. He was also a Beahr’s fellow at the University of California, Berkeley. Muralee is also an award winning author in his native Malayalam and a social media influencer.
Elena Xoplaki
Senior Scientist, Acting Head of the Climatology, Climate Dynamics and Climate Change Research Group, Justus Liebig University
Elena Xoplaki is Senior Scientist, currently Acting Head of the Climatology, Climate Dynamics and Climate Change Research Group at Justus Liebig University Giessen in Germany. She is an expert on climate variability and change in the past, present and future with spatial focus on the greater Mediterranean region. She conducts multi- and interdisciplinary research and promotes collaboration between natural sciences, humanities, and social sciences on an international level. She is working with climate observational data, climate models and climate proxies. Her two new projects focus on extreme events and impacts on the food sector. She is a Fellow of the European Academy of Sciences
