Dr. Bryann Avendaño, a humanitarian engineer and scientist with a PhD in Civil and Natural Resources Engineering, bridges policymakers and scientists by translating complex data into actionable insights. His work focuses on public engagement, participatory engineering, and interactive modeling tools to support evidence-driven decision-making and planning for resilience to natural hazards.

Dr. Andrea Grant, social scientist with a PhD on communicating risk and experience in systems thinking to support integration of different perspectives for embedding change in awareness and practice. Andrea has conducted research on informal and formal institutions to better understand power relations and generative potential of behavioural change. Dr. Bryann Avendaño, humanitarian engineer and scientist with a PhD in Civil and Natural Resources Engineering, bridges policymakers and scientists by translating complex data into actionable insights. His work focuses on public engagement, participatory engineering, and interactive modeling tools to support evidence-driven decision-making and planning for resilience to natural hazards.  Simon Wegner is a social scientist at Scion who focuses on risk perception, behaviour, decision-making and policy in the context of wildfire and other environmental threats. His work considers how policy, scientific information and psychological factors interact to shape behaviour. Lisa Langer, senior scientist at Scion, New Zealand Forest Research Institute has led Scion’s social wildfire research since 2003. Currently she leads research to investigate how decisions made at different points throughout the planning, design and housing development construction influence wildfire risk within Scion’s Extreme wildfire research programme.

Lisa Langer, senior scientist at Scion, New Zealand Forest Research Institute has led Scion’s social wildfire research since 2003. Currently she leads research to investigate how decisions made at different points throughout the planning, design and housing development construction influence wildfire risk within Scion’s Extreme wildfire research programme.

Simon Wegner is a social scientist at Scion who focuses on risk perception, behaviour, decision-making and policy in the context of wildfire and other environmental threats. His work considers how policy, scientific information and psychological factors interact to shape behaviour.

Dr. Laura Robichaux has more than a decade of experience in climate adaptation, coastal hazards, engineering and risk management research and consultancy. She is Beca’s adaptation planning lead and works with governments and large asset owners to develop 100-year adaptation strategies.