New Chief Scientist appointed
The CBA is delighted to welcome Dr Cécile Girardin as its new Chief Scientist.
The appointment follows the transition of Professor Giuseppe Scarascia-Mugnozza who continues his collaboration with the CBA as an Honorary Senior Scientific Advisor.
Dr Girardin will focus on the CBA’s project and programme activities, ensuring that landscape-level nature-based solutions are guided by robust, evidence-based science, working alongside the core CBA team and Scientific Advisory Board.
Her experience spans science, policy and implementation, grounded in years of work across ecology, nature and climate science. She trained as an ecosystems scientist at Imperial College London and the University of Oxford, where she completed her D.Phil, and has spent her career translating rigorous science into action: working in tropical forests, managing international research teams, leading peer-reviewed publications, training students and corporate leaders, and shaping the dialogue between science, policy and practice.
Cécile has held scientific roles at the University of Oxford, including Technical Director of the Nature-based Solutions Initiative (NbSI), Science Lead of the Oxford Biodiversity Network, and Fellow of the Oxford Martin School. Her research for Oxford’s Global Ecosystems Monitoring network has advanced global understanding of carbon dynamics in tropical ecosystems. She was lead author of study in Nature exploring the potential and limits of the long-term effectiveness of nature-based solutions for climate mitigation — part of a body of work spanning nearly 60 publications.
Earlier in her career, she supported the UN Food and Agriculture Organization in operationalising REDD+ readiness programmes. She is co-founder of Nature-based Insights, a social venture spin out from University of Oxford focused on building practical, scientifically credible tools for companies to design and monitor nature strategies in their supply chains.
Alongside her scientific work, Cécile is an illustrator, producing murals and artwork for organisations including UNFCCC, UN Biodiversity, IIED, Oxford University Press, David Finkling books. She often brings this creative practice in communicating complex science to broader audiences.
