About
Robert is co-Director of MSc Engineering in the Coastal Environment (ECE) and the Southampton lead of the MSc Coastal and Marine Engineering and Management (CoMEM). Within the University, Robert is the theme champion the Society and Government theme in the Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute (SMMI) and also in the lead of the research group 'Coastal Engineering and Management'. He is also the Southampton lead at the where he is researches . Robert also is on the Editorial Board for.
Research
Research groups
Research interests
- long-term coastal engineering and management
- the issues of coastal impacts and adaptation to climate change, with an emphasis on sea-level rise
- the assessment of the future of deltaic areas, which are the most threatened coastal setting in the coming century
Current research
Robert's research is mainly focussed long-term coastal engineering and management, especially the issues of coastal impacts and adaptation to climate change, with an emphasis on sea-level rise. A major recent theme is the assessment of the future of deltaic areas, which are the most threatened coastal setting in the coming century. In particular, he has been working with the Planning Commission of the Government of Bangladesh to support the .
He was lead author of chapters in four reports of the : ; ; ; and the Third Assessment Report (2001). He was Convening Lead Author (with P.P. Wong (Singapore)) for the "" chapter in the IPCC 4th assessment and was the Review Editor of the (2014).
He has contributed to many national assessments such as the DEFRA-funded "Fast Track" assessments as the coastal expert, the on the Economics of Climate Change, and led the coastal research theme in the which developed the "Coastal Simulator". He continues to lead the Cities and Coasts theme of the Tyndall Centre. He also contributed to the Foresight study of and its update for the and participated in related UK missions to Russia and the USA.
He is one of the principal developers of the which builds on his experience with the Fast Track Assessments. has been used in both research and in policy development. This includes input into the EU Green Paper on Adaptation, the on adaptation costs, theassessment of , and the study of China, South Korea, Japan and Mongolia as well as recent papers on (2013), (2014) and (2016). He has lead two recent OECD papers on climate change, including a global assessment of flood exposure in which was followed by a city risk assessment in 2013. He has also advised several national governments on adaptation in coastal areas, such as Singapore.
Recently he has been Principal Investigator/Co-Investigator on a number of major projects. He led the NERC-funded (2012-2016) which concerned "Predicting Long-term Coastal Geomorphological Evolution" and is a partnership with the with application to flood and erosion risk management. He led the Ecosystems Services for Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) study on "" (2012-2016). This is based in coastal Bangladesh and results are being used to support the , including the ESPA-funded Continuation Project from 2017 to 2108. It resulted in an open access book on . Presently, his main project is the / funded project of ''. This researches vulnerability to sea-level rise and other drivers of change in the .
Research projects
Completed projects
Publications
Teaching
Robert's teaching involves undergraduate and postgraduate contributions to the Civil Engineering Programmes mostly focussed around coastal engineering issues, including Independent Projects (FEEG3003) and MSc Student Dissertations (FEE6012). He co-directs the MSc Engineering in the Coastal Environment with Dr. Ivan Haigh based in the School of Ocean and Earth Sciences at the . He also leads the University of Southampton involvement in the Erasmus Mundus MSc Coastal and Marine Engineering and Management (CoMEM), which is led by and also involves , and .
Biography
Robert Nicholls is Professor of Coastal Engineering within the School of Engineering at the University of Southampton.
Robert engages in research on coastal/climate issues at the University of Southampton, including collaborations across the University, such as with Oceanography and Geography. His main research focus is long-term coastal issues, especially the issues of coastal impacts and adaptation to climate change, with an emphasis on sea-level rise. This research engages at all scales from the local such as in the Solent, up to global-scale assessments. A major theme of research has been densely populated deltaic areas which are hotspot of contemporary problems which will intensify in the coming decades. He has also been involved in a number of international assessments, and in particular the (IPCC), who were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. Robert was awarded the Roger Revelle Medal by the in 2008. This recognises "outstanding contributions to the ocean sciences by inspired researchers who communicate their knowledge and global vision of the challenges facing our Planet in order to shape a better future for humankind". He co-led the from 2014 to 2022. They organised two major conferences: '' at Columbia University in July 2017 and 'Sea Level 2022' held in Singapore in July 2022. He is a member of the ASCE COPRI Coastal Engineering Research Council which organises the biannual International Coastal on Coastal Engineering (ICCE);-- ICCE26 will be held in Galveston, USA.
Prizes
- Awarded the Roger Revelle Medal by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (2008)
- Lloyd’s Science of Risk Prize Climate Change (2012)