Coleen Vogel, previously a Professor at the University of Pretoria and ‘visiting’ Professor with the University of Stellenbosch, and currently at the University of the Witwatersrand, is a climatologist by training. Her research includes a focus on the social dimensions of climate change and disaster risk reduction. She has chaired and been the vice chair of international global environmental change scientific committees, including the IHDP, LUCC and has been a member of the IRDR and the Earth System Science Programme. She currently serves on various international boards, including the African science committee of Future Earth. She has assisted in several government-related development activities in South and southern Africa and was a contributor to the Disaster Management Act process in South Africa. She was one of the chapter lead authors of the Fourth IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) Africa Chapter and part of the final synthesis author panel of that report and was a chapter author contributing to the 5th Assessment of the IPCC, working on a chapter dealing with Human Security. A Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the author team together with Al Gore for the efforts made in compiling the 4th assessment report. She has also received the Burtoni Award for international excellence in climate adaptation research and received the University of the Witwatersrand Vice Chancellor’s teacher’s award for excellence in teaching.