Julian Hunt

Julian Hunt, (Lord Professor Julian Hunt), born 5 September 1941, is Emeritus Professor of Climate Modeling at the Department of Earth Sciences at University College of London. He was previously based at Cambridge University and maintains a link as Visiting Fellow of the Malaysian Commonwealth Studies Centre.

Professor Hunt was made a Baron in the House of Lords in 2000. His title is Lord Hunt of Chesterton. He is a Labour Party peer.

He has been a Fellow of the Royal Society since 1989 and was on the council from 1998-1999. He is also a member of the Royal Institution.

As Chief Executive of the Meteorological Office he had managerial responsibility for overseeing the transition to Trading Fund in 1996 and was chairman of the Informal Conference of West European Directors from 1994-95.

Science Media Centre

Hunt was a member of the scientific advisory board of the SMC between 2002-2012. Funders of SMC, which he has had professional links with, are the Met Office, NERC, UCL, University of Cambridge and BP.

Media

Hunt is a regular media contributor and has written articles for The Guardian, the Huffington Post, the Times and Reuters. He mainly writes articles on climate change, however he has recently been writing about chemical weapons and Syria. He has written articles published in South Africa, New Zealand, Thailand regarding nuclear energy options, arguing that it is time for “a mature debate” about “the role that nuclear can play in the future energy mix” and that the “emerging hybrid option deserves wider understanding and support.”

Political career

Hunt’s political career began in the 1970s as a Cambridge City Councillor from 1971-74, he was Leader of the Labour Group from 1972-1973. He was a Governor of Chesterton Secondary School from 1971-1985 and Chairman from 1979-1985. He has sat on several committees within the House of Lords since becoming a peer in 2000 including Select Committee on Science and Technology Sub-Committee 2 from 2001-02, Committee On Animals In Scientific Procedures from 2001-02, Select Committee on 'Microprocessors and nano-technology' 2002, Select Committee on 'EU and Climate Change' from 2003-2004, Draft Marine Bill (Joint Committee) in 2008.

He is vice-chairman and director of Globe UK (Global Legislators for a Balanced Environment).

Business interests

Lord Hunt is chairman and shareholder of Cambridge Environmental Research Consultants Ltd, which he helped found in 1985. The company uses “new developments in environmental research from Cambridge University and elsewhere for practical purposes.” The company’s website lists some of the company’s clients which includes major corporations such as BP, BAA, Johnson Matthey, Savills and British Sugar; UK government departments – DEFRA, DfT, Environment Agency, Food Standards Agency, Highways Agency and international government agencies such as the European Union and Singapore National Environment Agency. Hunt holds a remunerated position as chairman of the advisory board of Tokamak Solutions. The company was formed in 2009 to develop “small spherical tokamaks as neutron sources and plasma research instruments” through nuclear fusion. In 2011 the company signed a contract with ITER, worth £92,600 to “advise on diagnostics for measuring neutron emission and fusion power.” The company is based at Culham Innovation Centre. In 2011 the company received funding from Sir Martin and Lady Aubrey Wood, The Rainbow Seed Fund, Oxford Instruments plc (an Isis Innovation spin-out), and investor members of the Oxford Early Investment Network.

Lord Hunt’s parliamentary page lists his remunerated interests as:

• Professor, Technological University of Delft, Netherlands
• Professor, Arizona State University
• Visiting Fellow, Malaysian Commonwealth Studies Centre, Cambridge
• Scientific Consultant, Ministry of Defence and its subcontractors
• Scientific Consultant, University College London
• Scientific Consultant, Institut Mecanique de Fluides de Toulouse
• Professor, Hong Kong University
• Chair, Advisory Committee, Tokamak Solutions Ltd

Career

• 1967: Visiting Lecturer, University of Cape Town, South Africa, on Magntohydrodynamics (3 months)
• 1967: Fulbright scholarship - Research Associate, Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, with Professor G.S.S. Ludford.
• 1968-70: Research Officer, Central Electricity Research Laboratories in the Fluid Dynamics Section, under Mr. D.J.W. Richards. (Main work on wind forces on structures.)
• 1970-1978: University Lecturer in Applied Mathematics and Engineering, University of Cambridge.
• 1978: University Reader in Fluid Mechanics, University of Cambridge.
• 1990-1992: Professor in Fluid Mechanics, University of Cambridge.
• 1992-1997: Chief Executive, Meteorological Office, Bracknell (in 1996 became Trading Fund Agency of the UK Ministry of Defence).
• 1997-1998: Visiting Scientist CERFACS, Toulouse and Visiting Professor Institute de Mechanique des Fluides de Toulouse.
• 1997-1998: Professor Mechanical Engineering, Arizona State University.
• 1998: Visiting Scientist, Stanford University Center for Turbulence Research.
• 1998-1999: Senior Research Fellow, Trinity College Cambridge.
• 1999: Professor, Climate Modelling, Space & Climate Physics department and Earth Sciences department, (Honorary Professor, Mathematics), University College London.
• 2003: Director, Lighthill Institute of Mathematical Sciences (LIMS)

Affiliations, awards and publications

Affiliations

• 1980-1992: Member, U.K. Atmospheric Dispersion Working Group (of National Radiological Protection Board)
• 1985-1990: Advisory Panel on Environmental Research to Central Electricity Generating Board
• 1992-1997: Permanent representative of the UK, World Meteorological Organisation and member, Executive Council.
• 1993-1999: Member, UK Science & Technology Committee of International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR)
• 1998-2002: Chairman of the Scientific Committee of the NERC – Insurance Industry Project TSUNAMI on the application of scientific research to the insurance problems.
• 2000: Royal Society Observer on Advisory Committee on Natural Disaster Reduction
• 2001: Appointed Vice-President of the National Society for Clean Air
• 2003: Member, Environment Agency Scientific Advisory Panel
• Academic Director: Lighthill Risk Network
• President: ACOPS (Advisory Committee on Protection of the Sea)
• Project advisor: Global System Dynamics and Policies Project
• Fellow: Trinity College, Cambridge University

Awards

• 2005: Honorary Degree, University of Dundee
• 2004: Honorary Fellow, Institution of Civil Engineers
• 2003: Fellow, American Physical Society
• 2001: Lewis Fry Richardson medal for non-linear geophysics, European Geophysical Society
• 2000: Honorary Doctor of Science, Institut Polytechnique du Grenoble, Honorary Doctor of Science, University of Uppsala, Honorary Doctor of Science, University of Warwick
• 1997: Honorary Doctor of Science, University of East Anglia
• 1996: Honorary Doctor of Science, University of Bath
• 1995: Honorary Doctor of Science, University of Salford
• 1992: Honorary Fellow, Wind Engineering Society (Prize for best paper 1996)
• 1988: Canadian Society of Mechanical Engineers prize for best paper in 1987

Publications

• Hunt, J.C.R., (2005) Chairs' reflections - G8 + 5 Legislators Climate Change Forum. Globe UK, 5pp
• Schellnhuber, H.J., Crutzen, P.J., Clark, W.C. and Hunt, J.C.R., (2005), Earth system analysis for sustainability. Environment, 47(8), 10-27
• Hunt, Julian (Ed.), (2005), London's Environment : Prospects for a sustainable world city. 336 pp. Imperial College Press
• Hunt, J.C.R., (2006), Communicating big themes in applied mathematics. In Mathematical modelling-education, engineering and economics (Proceedings of ICTMA12, London, July 2005., Ed. C. Haines) Horwood; Chichester.
• Hunt, J.C.R., (2006) Sound science is not enough. New Statesman, London, 3 April, pp. 14-15
• Hunt, J.C.R., (2006) Dealing with environmental challenges - new approaches. Proc. UN conf. on Water Statistics, The Hague, May 2006
• Hunt, J.C.R. (2008) Book review of ‘An Appeal to Reason; a cool look at global warming’ by N. Lawson. Science in Parliament, 4, 18-19
• Hunt, J.C.R. (2008) US gets brave on warming, The Arizona Republic, April (“A welcome US u-turn”, The House Magazine, 1265, 9th June 2008
• Hunt, J.C.R. and O'Connor, G., (2010), The third nuclear option. New Scientist, March 6, 22-23