Andy Pitman

Professor Andy Pitman is a distinguished climate scientist at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), based in the Climate Change Research Centre within the Faculty of Science. With a career spanning over three decades, he has established himself as a leading expert in land surface processes and climate modeling.

His research interests are broad but primarily focus on land surface processes and their representation in global and regional climate models. He investigates the limits of how well climate models represent key land processes and the implications for the reliability of projections of carbon and water in the Earth System. His work also encompasses the robustness of global and regional model projections at various scales and the operationalization of climate projections for business applications. He has recently expanded his research to include risk assessment processes and the prevention of misuse of climate projections in business contexts.

Pitman was the Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes (which ended in December 2025) and serves as Chair of the National Committee for Earth System Science. He is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science and holds multiple advisory positions including on the Advisory Board of the Australian Community and Earth System Simulator National Research Infrastructure (ACCESS NRI), the science advisory board of the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN), and the Advisory Board of the National Environmental Science Program (NESP) Climate Systems Hub. Additionally, he serves as a Commissioner on the New South Wales Net Zero Commission and as a non-executive director of Risk Frontiers, an insurance-funded business focused on risk.

His extensive publication record demonstrates expertise across climate modeling, land-atmosphere interactions, drought mechanisms, climate extremes, and the application of climate science to business risk assessment. His recent work shows a growing emphasis on translating climate science into practical applications for risk management and policy.

• Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science

Professor Pitman actively collaborates with researchers across disciplines and institutions, contributing to both fundamental climate science and its practical applications. His work bridges the gap between theoretical climate modeling and real-world climate risk management, making significant contributions to both academic knowledge and practical climate adaptation strategies.