Olivia Taylor

I am a geographer primarily interested in the politics of responding to climate and enviornmental change and in understanding the drivers which shape this. I have previously worked on climate resilient agricultural systems in sub-sharan Africa and the tensions in achieving this in a context of narratives about 'synergies', 'climate smart agriculture', and the nexus around climate, water, energy and foodunder the SDGs. You can find out more about this project here: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/ssrp/research/climate-and-food-insecurity/climate-resilient-agricultural-systems I hold a MA in Geography from the University of Cambridge (2012-2015) and an MA in Environment, Development and Policy from the University of Sussex (2015-2016). In my role as Project Manager, I work on ForPAc, 'Towards Forecast-based Preparedness Action (ForPAc)', which is a consortium research project which aims both to improve weather and climate forecasts for Kenya, as well as overcome institutional and knowledge barriers to taking action based on available climate information. ForPAc is funded by the DFID-NERC 'Science for Humanitarian Emergencies & Resilience' Programme. You can find out more about the project here: https://www.forpac.org/ I am also a PhD researcher in the SHEAR studentship consortia, working on emergent 'early action' approaches (such as forecast-based financing and action, adaptive social protection, rapid response funds and new insurance mechanisms) which seek to sytematise anticipatory responses to hazards and disasters. I am particularly interested in the politics of taking anticipatory action, how institutions deal with the risk of acting in vain and how they conceptualise risk and uncertainty through these systems.

Website: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/profiles/369661