Kim Cobb

Kim Cobb is the Director of the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society and Professor in Environment and Society and Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Brown University. Her research focuses on climate variability, coastal flooding, and paleoclimate reconstruction using coral and cave records. She holds a B.A. from Yale University (1996) and a Ph.D. from Scripps Institution of Oceanography (2002). Previously, she was a Professor at Georgia Tech and Director of their Global Change Program. Her work includes leading field expeditions in Borneo and the central Pacific. She has received numerous awards, including the Hans Oeschger Medal (2019) and AAAS Fellowship (2021). She serves on climate policy boards and advocates for diversity in STEM and public climate communication.

Education: B.A. Yale University (1996), Ph.D. Scripps Institution of Oceanography (2002). Postdoctoral work at Caltech (2002–2004).

Research Interests: Climate extremes, ENSO dynamics, coral geochemistry, monsoon systems, and coastal resilience. Her lab integrates field data with climate models to understand anthropogenic impacts on tropical climate.

Awards and Honors: Extensive recognition for scientific contributions and advocacy, including presidential and international medals. Recent roles include IPCC Lead Author and U.S. Intelligence Advisory Board member.

Grants and Teams: Leads interdisciplinary projects on climate solutions, including grants from NSF and collaborative initiatives with policymakers. Her work emphasizes equitable climate action and community resilience.