Herman Kasper Gilissen new professor at DCC

Herman Kasper Gilissen has been appointed as a professor of Climate Change, Regulation, and Deltas at the Delta Climate Center in Vlissingen and Utrecht University.

Since graduating in 2008, cross-border water management in the Zeeland delta, climate adaptation, flood risks, and water shortages have been themes in his research. He is pleased with his appointment at the DCC in Vlissingen. He will develop education and conduct research to increase climate resilience in the Zeeland delta. "I am happy with all the energy surrounding the new center and the approach that has been chosen," says Herman Kasper Gilissen. "The focus is on solutions, actual applications. That really appeals to me. The strength of the DCC lies in the collaboration between scientific disciplines, but also in the role that governments and private parties in Zeeland play in formulating research questions and solving them. This way of working, from different backgrounds, together on one problem, is unique in the Netherlands."

More sustainable and climate-resilient

Gilissen has been associated with the Utrecht University Center for Water, Oceans, and Sustainability Law for years. He collaborates with researchers from different scientific disciplines to solve water and climate-related issues. "The ambition of the DCC is to make the Zeeland delta more sustainable and climate-resilient. My role is to investigate how the law can contribute to this."

Gilissen works half of his time in Vlissingen and half in Utrecht. As a lawyer, he appreciates the focus at the DCC on legal-administrative and governance issues. His educational assignment is: "What contribution can the law make to increasing climate resilience in Zeeland? And what lessons for broader applications can we draw from this for the Netherlands and other places in the world? "It is not just about devising new technical solutions, but also about the question of what the legal prerequisites are and how those solutions can best be implemented administratively and socially in the region." PHOTO BAS VAN HATTUM