Fatima Denton

Dr Fatima Denton is the Director of the Institute for Natural Resources in Africa at the United Nations University, Ghana. Prior to joining UNU, Dr Denton has worked in Ethiopia since 2012 with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), which is principally concerned with natural capital and their interactions with sustainable development. Her roles included Director of the Natural Resource Management Division and Coordinator of the African Climate Policy Centre.

Dr Denton has also served as a Programme Leader with the Canada-based International Development Research Centre (IDRC), where she managed high-impact action research. She previously worked as an energy scientist with the United Nations Environment Programme Risoe Centre (Denmark) and as an energy programme manager with Enda Tiers Monde (Senegal). She has written more than 50 peer-reviewed articles, reports, and books, and is lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) special report on climate change and land; the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report, Working Group III, and the Working Group II Fourth and Fifth Assessment Reports; and the IPCC Special Report on Renewable Energy and Climate Change Mitigation.

Dr Denton has served on numerous scientific committees and boards, including the Independent Scientific Committee of the CGIAR Climate Change and Food Security Programme, and is a current member of the advisory board of  Future Earth and a trustee for the UK-based International Institute on Environment and Development.

She holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Birmingham (UK).