Penn Global Launches Climate Security and Geopolitics Project, Scott Moore Named Senior Advisor for Climate Security

In anticipation of Climate Week at Penn, Penn Global is pleased to announce the launch of the Climate Security and Geopolitics Project.

Led by Scott Moore, Director of China Programs and Strategic Initiatives for Penn Global and Practice Professor of Political Science, this research project examines how the return of great power rivalry, particularly with China, impacts international climate action. It explores both the challenges and opportunities geopolitics presents for climate mitigation and adaptation, offering a unique perspective distinct from existing work in the field of climate and environmental security.

The Project will tackle questions at the intersection of geopolitics and climate action. Questions explored include how national security policies can effectively align with climate initiatives, what changes in global governance are needed to address the risk of geoengineering interventions, and how China uses its involvement in international climate issues to bolster its soft power - and what this means for for US national interests.

The Project also includes a student-focused component through the Penn Global – Perry World House Climate & Security Policy Fellows Program. Supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the program provides Penn graduate students with exposure to public service careers focused on climate policy.

Based within Penn Global at the University of Pennsylvania and launched with the support of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy and the Browne Center for International Politics at Penn, the Penn Global Project on Climate Security and Geopolitics will position Penn as a leading source of research and solutions at the intersection of climate policy, security, and international relations. Though rooted in rigorous research, the initiative will be aimed squarely at policymakers both in the U.S. and at the multilateral level.

To formally introduce the new project, Penn Global will host a series of launch events throughout the fall of 2024. On October 21, Penn Global will partner with Perry World House and the Center for Climate and Security to host a roundtable discussion on Geopolitics and the Future of Climate Finance, featuring Michael Weisberg, Bess W. Heyman President’s Professor and Deputy Director of Perry World House; Erin Sikorsky, Director, Center for Climate and Security and former Perry World House Visiting Fellow; Scott Moore; and Koko Warner, Director, International Organization for Migration Global Data Institute and Perry World House Non-Resident Senior Advisor. The conversation will take place at Penn Washington. 

Scott Moore to become Senior Advisor for Climate Security at the U.S. Department of Defense

Scott Moore has also been named a Senior Advisor for Climate Security at the U.S. Department of Defense. 

In this role, which he will hold in conjunction with his current responsibilities with Penn Global, Dr. Moore will help shape U.S. government policy at the intersection of climate change and national security. 

In addition to being Practice Professor of Political Science, Director of China Programs and Strategic Initiatives, Dr. Moore is also Senior Advisor to The Water Center at Penn at the University of Pennsylvania. His primary research interests center on China, climate change, and security. Other research and teaching interests include water security and China’s role in the biotechnology sector.

Dr. Moore’s first book, Subnational Hydropolitics: Conflict, Cooperation, and Institution-Building in Shared River Basins (Oxford University Press, 2018), examines how climate change and other pressures affect the likelihood of conflict over water within countries. His latest, China’s Next Act: How Sustainability and Technology are Reshaping China’s Rise and the World’s Future (Oxford University Press, 2022), explores China’s role in global public goods provision against the backdrop of geopolitical rivalry and competition. His current research and book project focuses on how the return of great power rivalry between major economies and emitters shapes prospects for climate action at the international level.

Prior to joining Penn, Dr. Moore was a Young Professional and Water Resources Management Specialist at the World Bank Group, and Environment, Science, Technology, and Health Officer for China at the U.S. Department of State, where he worked extensively on the Paris Agreement on climate change. Dr. Moore holds doctoral and master’s degrees from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar and an undergraduate degree from Princeton.