Civic has appointed Olivia O’Brien to the newly created role of head of climate resilience.
O’Brien joins the business from Longevity Partners, where she was global head of climate resilience and worked closely with investors, asset managers and developers in both the public and private sector on the financial and operational implications of climate risk.
Her new role spans both physical risks, such as flooding, overheating and storms, and business transition risks linked to reputation, policy, regulation and shifting market expectations.
O’Brien’s remit includes assessing climate risk on sites that vary in scale from individual plots to city districts, stress testing designs against future scenarios and working with project teams to adapt proposals to improve long-term performance.
Julian Broster, co-founder and chief operating officer of Civic, said: “Civic is growing, and the challenges our clients are facing are changing. Climate risk is a central consideration in how places are planned, designed, delivered and then maintained. Climate sensitive design has been a core consideration across our services since Civic was founded, and creating this role strengthens our ability to connect that expertise and continue evolving and expanding our approach. Olivia’s experience and perspective will build on our ability to turn analysis into action, while continuing to educate our clients and the industry and support our ambition to deliver long-term value for people, place and planet.”
O’Brien added: “Civic’s approach allows me to move into a role where I can see solutions carried through into delivery. In my previous roles, much of the work focused on operational assessment and reporting. While that remains important, the greatest value comes from considering climate change much earlier in the process. Designing with future climate conditions in mind is often far more effective, and cost efficient, than adapting a building once it’s already in use.
“At Civic, resilience can be built in from the very beginning of a project, shaping decisions rather than reacting to them later. Climate risk doesn’t stop at site boundaries, so taking a wider, system thinking approach and working across services is key to making a lasting difference.”
