Hindumathi PALANISAMY

Dr Hindumathi Palanisamy is a Scientific Officer with the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in Geneva. She serves as WMO’s science lead for ocean-related issues and focal point on sea-level rise, coordinating scientific contributions to UN sea-level processes, UNFCCC and COP preparations. She also coordinates WCRP’s sea-level activities, working with partners to connect research and observations with coastal adaptation and climate services.

At WCRP, she leads Secretariat coordination of the APARC, CLIVAR and GEWEX Core Projects and manages their International Project Offices. Her responsibilities cover strategic planning, governance, budgets, institutional agreements, partnerships and programme delivery. Her portfolio includes the Global Precipitation Experiment and Research on Climate Intervention. She works across UN organisations, national agencies and scientific institutions to develop joint activities, mobilise resources and strengthen capacity.

An ocean and climate scientist with 15 years of experience, Hindumathi previously worked as a Senior Research Scientist at the Centre for Climate Research Singapore. There, she co-led regional sea-level and coastal climate research, contributed to Singapore’s Third National Climate Change Study and led the sea-level components of its Annual Climate Assessment Reports. Working with government agencies, she helped translate observations and projections into information for coastal risk assessment and adaptation planning.

Earlier, she worked at CNRS–LEGOS in Toulouse on research supported by the European Space Agency (ESA) and the French Space Agency (CNES). Within ESA’s Climate Change Initiative, she coordinated scientific inputs to the global sea-level budget assessment, integrating satellite altimetry, satellite gravimetry and in-situ observations. Her CNES-supported doctoral research examined global and regional sea-level change, ocean warming and climate variability. She holds a PhD in Space Oceanography from the University of Toulouse and serves on the American Geophysical Union’s Global Engagement Committee.