An external view of the Met Office building at night.

Professor Rosa Barciela

Rosa Barciela is the Met Office Principal Scientific Consultant and Strategic Head of Health Science Integration (Weather and Climate).

Areas of expertise

  • Weather & Climate, Environment and Human Health.
  • UK and European policy
  • Food Security (Marine)
  • Earth System and Biogeochemical Modellling
  • Process studies and model evaluation
  • Artificial neural networks
  • Data assimilation

Publications by Prof. Rosa Barciela

Current activities

As Head of Scientific Consultancy, Rosa's role is to provide end users with robust, science-based information on the direct and indirect impacts and risks across all sectors that are vulnerable to the effects of adverse weather and climate and non-climatic drivers.

Professor Barciela is also Strategic Head of Science Integartion for Human Health and coordinates climate and environmental sciences, epidemiology and human health to encourage integration of human health adaptations to climate change with wider environmental adaptation strategies. She works with Public Health England, the European Centre for Environment and Human Health and the University of Exeter on environmental public health tracking. Prof. Barciela also works with international experts in NOAA and the joint WMO-WHO Office on research related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

Her career highlights include:

  • Eighteen years of experience developing and evaluating ocean prediction and climate modelling systems, at global and regional scales with an emphasis on the pull-through of research into weather and climate products and services.

  • First-hand experience working with policy and decision-makers while seconded to the Marine and Fisheries Directorate of Defra.

  • Assessment of requirements and evidence to inform international policy and negotiations on fisheries and ecosystem assessments during her time as co-chair of the International Councilfor the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) Working Group on Operational oceanographic products for Fisheries and the Environment.

  • Coordination of international programmes of work (e.g. GODAE OceanView Task Team) and requirements for the specification of the European Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (e.g. GMES Partnership for User Requirements Evaluation). 

  • Expert Reviewer to IPCC Working Group II Assessment Report 5.

External recognition

  • In 2015, Rosa received the ICES Service Award for her leadership role as Co-chair of the Working Group on Operational oceanographic products for Fisheries and the Environment.
  • In 2010, Rosa and her co-authors were awarded the Denny Medal for best research paper by the Journal of Operational Oceanography.
  • Rosa is a member of the Defra Network of Evidence Experts.
  • Rosa is a member of the Review Editorial Board of Coastal Ocean Processes.
  • Rosa is a member of the International Expert Panel of the Canadian Federal Government National Centres of Excellence and the Ocean Networks Canada Innovation Centre.

  • Rosa is an Expert Advisor to GMES/Copernicus Partnership for User Requirements Evaluation (PURE) for the evolution of the European Copernicus Marine Services.