Dr Mark Hemer

Dr Mark Hemer is a Research Group Leader (Regional Climate Intelligence) and Principal Research Scientist with CSIRO Environment's Climate Science Centre. His expertise is working with private and public end-users to ensure that climate products and services are appropriate to inform impact assessments for decision-making, and addresses industry challenges.

Mark leads CSIRO's Climate Innovation Hub, helping Australian businesses respond to the risks posed by climate climate change through collaboration, innovation and application of climate intelligence. Until March 2023, he coordinated CSIRO's activities in the Australian Climate Service - a partnership including CSIRO, the Bureau of Meteorology, Geoscience Australia and Australian Bureau of Statistics, to provide data and intelligence to support each phase of the national disaster continuum in the context of a changing climate; Prevention, Preparedness, Response, Recovery, Relief and Resilience.

Prior to these roles, Mark was the lead for the Blue Economy Co-operative Research Centre Offshore Renewable Energy Systems's research program, being part of the successful bid team for Australia's largest CRC and through the first two years during the CRC's establishment. This role related to Mark's research efforts to assess the opportunities for offshore renewable energy (wind, wave, tidal and solar) to contribute to Australia's future energy mix.

Mark has maintained his research as a shelf oceanographer, with strong interests in MetOcean conditions in a variable and changing climate, with application to building a strong and resilient blue economy.

Mark maintains a number of national and international roles, including as the Australian delegate to the International Energy Agency Ocean Energy Systems Technology Collaboration Program; Chair of the Coordinated Ocean Wave CLimate Project (COWCLIP) which aims to improve understanding of surface wave climate variability and change and the role of waves in the coupled climate system; Chair of Australia's Forum for Operational Oceanography Surface Waves Working Group; and member of the World Meteorological Organization Standing Committee on Marine Meteorology and Oceanographic Services (SC-MMO). He is a lead author on the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (Oceans, cryosphere and sea-level change), and has been a contributing author to the IPCC Fourth (2007) and Fifth Assessment Reports (2013), and Special Reports on Oceans and Cryosphere (2019) and Extremes (2012). Mark has published over 70 peer-reviewed research papers, and more than 70 other reports and articles.

Academic Qualifications:

• PhD. Antarctic and Southern Ocean Studies, University of Tasmania, 2003.
• BSc (Hons I): Oceanography and Meteorology, Flinders University of South Australia, 1998.

Professional Appointments:

• Research Group Leader, CSIRO Climate Science Centre. Hobart, Australia (2022-Ongoing)
• Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere. Hobart, Australia (2017- Ongoing).
• Research Program Lead, Offshore Renewable Energy Systems, Blue Economy CRC (2019-2021)
• Senior Research Scientist, CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere. Hobart, Australia (2011- 2017).
• Research Scientist, CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research. Hobart, Australia (2008 - 2011).
• Postdoctoral Fellow, CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, Hobart, Australia (2006 - 2008).
• Research Scientist, Geoscience Australia, Canberra, Australia (2004- 2005).
• Postdoctoral Research Fellow. National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland (2003)

Adjunct and Visiting Positions:

• Adjunct Associate Professor, National Centre for Maritime Engineering and Hydrodynamics, University of Tasmania, Launceston, Australia. (2013-2021)
• Visiting Associate Professor, Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto University, Japan (2015)
• Visiting Scientist, UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education, Delft, The Netherlands (2014).
• Visiting Fellow, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado at Boulder, USA (2012).
• Visiting Scientist, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands. (2010).

Awards

• 2012 - Visiting Fellowship, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado at Boulder, USA
• 2011 - CSIRO Julius Career Award
• 2006 - CSIRO Office of the Chief Executive Postdoctoral Research Fellowship

Service to Profession and Community

• 2011 - ongoing: Founding co-chair JCOMM Coordinated Ocean Wave Climate Project (COWCLIP)
• 2017 - ongoing: Chair Australian Forum for Operational Oceanography Surface Waves Working Group
• 2018 - ongoing: Australian delegate - International Energy Agency Ocean Energy Systems Technology Collaboration Program
• 2020 - ongoing: Member World Meteorological Organization Standing Committee on Marine Meteorology and Oceanographic Services
• 2020 - ongoing: Member Standards Australia Committee EL-066 Marine Energy - wave, tidal and other water current converters
• 2014 - ongoing: Member, Asian Wave and Tidal Energy Conference Organising Committee
• 2017: Member, Technical Organising Committee 2018 International Conference on Ocean Energy, Normandy, France.
• 2017: Guest Editor (Hemer and Wang), Elsevier Ocean Modelling (VSI on Wind-Wave Climate)
• 2016-2017: Co-convenor European Geophysical Union General Assembly Session: Wave climate variability and change, with A. Semedo, M. Dobrynin and X. Wang.
• 2016: Co-Chair of organising committee: Inaugural Australian Ocean Renewable Energy Symposium, Melbourne.
• 2015: Guest Editor (Hemer and Tolman), Elsevier Ocean Modelling (SI 2 on Surface Ocean Waves)
• 2014: Contributor to Marine Strategic Science Plan
• 2013: Contributor to IPCC Working Group I 5th Assessment Report
• 2013: Guest Editor (Hemer and Tolman), Elsevier Ocean Modelling (SI on Surface Ocean Waves)
• 2010: Co-Chair Inaugural Australian Wind Waves Symposium.