Dr Wenju Cai
Director, Centre for Southern Hemisphere Oceans Research (CSHOR)
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Biography
Dr Wenju Cai, a Chief Research Scientist, an Office of Chief Executive Science Leader at CSIRO, and Director of Southern Hemisphere Oceans Research, specialises in research into global climate variability and change. With over 25 years of research and leadership experience, his interest spans from dynamics of modes of climate variability (such as El Niño-Southern Oscillation and the Indian Ocean Dipole) and their mechanisms, to climate change detection and attribution, through to impacts of individual forcing factors of increasing carbon dioxide, increasing anthropogenic aerosols, and stratospheric ozone depletion. His sustained science achievement has had major influence on research directions of a large body of work. His service to science communities includes a contributing authorship to IPCC reports, co-Chair of World Climate Research Programme CLIVAR Pacific Panel during 2009 – 2015, a member of the CLIVAR Scientific Steering Group (2016-2018) and its co-Chair (2019-ongoing). He specialises in conceptual nonlinear frameworks for extreme El Niño and extreme La Niña, and the IOD, uncovering nonlinearity in the dynamics and impact. These have resulted in the projection of increased frequency of these extremes under greenhouse warming. Cai has elucidated the dynamics of major modes of Southern Hemisphere ocean-atmosphere variability and change, including the role of Antarctic ozone depletion, increasing CO2 and the associated ocean circulation changes. In 2020, Cai was elected as Fellow of the Australian Academy Science.
Professional Areas
Current Roles
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Director
Centre for Southern Hemisphere Oceans Research (CSHOR) -
Office of Chief Executive Science Leader
CSIRO -
Chief Research Scientist
CSIRO Oceans & Atmosphere
Academic Qualifications
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1993
PhD Physical Oceanography
Flinders University, Australia -
1986
M Sc Physical Oceanography
Amoy University, China PR -
1983
B Sc Physics
Amoy University, China PR
Professional Experiences
-
2017-Present
Director
Centre for Southern Hemisphere Oceans Research -
2014-Present
Chief Research Scientist
CSIRO Oceans & Atmosphere -
2014-2016
Research Director
CSIRO Earth System Assessment Program -
2011-Present
Office of Chief Executive Science Leader
CSIRO -
2011-2014
Theme Leader, Ocean Process
Pacific-Australia Climate Change Science and Adaptation Programme -
2008-2014
Stream Leader, Ocean Climate Characterization and Prediction
CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship -
2007-2014
Senior Principal Research Scientist
CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research -
2004-2008
Deputy Stream Leader, Climate Applications, Prediction of Ocean and Weather
CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship -
2004-2008
Stream Leader, Climate and Water
CSIRO Water for a Healthy Country Flagship -
2003-2007
Principal Research Scientist
CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research -
1997-2003
Senior Research Scientist
CSIRO Atmospheric Research -
1997-1997
Foreign Specialist, Institute for Earth Sciences and Disaster Prevention (Feb. - March)
Japan Meteorological Agency, Japan -
1994-1997
Research Scientist
CSIRO Atmospheric Research -
1993-1994
Research Fellow, Canadian World Ocean Circulation Experiment Centre
University of Newfoundland -
1990-1993
Experimental Scientist
CSIRO Atmospheric Research
Achievements and Awards
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2020-2020
Fellow
Australian Academy of Science -
2019-2019
Highly Cited Researcher (< 1%)
Clarivate Web of Science -
2019-2019
Ocean Science Distinguished Lecture
Asian Oceanic Geophysical Society -
2016-2016
50th Anniversary Convocation Medal
Flinders University, South Australia -
2015-2015
China National Ocean Science and Technology Award
China State Ocean Administration -
2012-2012
Green Card Professor award (highest honour for overseas Chinese scholar)
Ocean University of China -
2011-2011
OCE Science Leader award
CSIRO -
2008-2008
Look Out! CSIRO Strategic Excellence Award (as part of Climate Change Australia Team)
CSIRO -
2008-2008
Best Science Communicator award
CSIRO -
2007-2007
Nobel Peace Prize
Contributing author to IPCC AR4 report for which IPCC was awarded the Prize
Other highlights
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2017-Present
Founding Director of the Centre for Southern Hemisphere Oceans Research (CSHOR), with a budget of $20m over 5 years. CSHOR is a long-term research collaboration between Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (QNLM) in China and CSIRO, together with CSHOR Australian partners, the University of New South Wales and University of Tasmania.
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2014-2016
As Director, CSIRO Earth System Assessment Program, leading negotiations with Universities and the Bureau of Meteorology to secure CSIRO’s Hub leadership in Earth System and Climate Change of the National Environmental Science Programme (~$25m over five years, 2016-2021).
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2010-2013
Contributing author to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report, writing four sections in Chapter 14 of Working Group II.
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2009-Present
As co-Chair of CLIVAR Pacific implementation panel, and member of the CLIVAR El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) Research Focus, leading international research on ENSO, and a CLIVAR ENSO workshop series.
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2009-2015
As co-Chair of CLIVAR Pacific implementation panel, and member of the CLIVAR Indonesian Throughflow Task team, leading and coordinating multi-national and multi-institutional Northwest Pacific Ocean Circulation and Climate experiment (NPOCE), and South Pacific Ocean Circulation and Climate Experiment (SPICE), with over $200m investment in western boundary current research.
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2005-2006
Lead investigator of the Coupled Model Inter-comparison Project on simulation of the Southern Hemispheric circulation in IPCC Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) models, leading to invitation by IPCC working Group 1 as a contributing author on Southern Hemisphere circulation change.
Related links
ORCID 0000-0001-6520-0829
We have publications by Dr Wenju Cai