Dr Ruth Adler is highly experienced senior adviser, negotiator and practitioner on international environment, sustainable development and climate change issues, and a former senior career officer of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). Ruth served as Australian Ambassador to Ireland (2013-2016) and Australian High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam (2006-2009), with earlier postings to Mexico and the Philippines. Between 2009 and 2011, Ruth served as Assistant Secretary of DFAT’s Environment Branch. In this role, she advised ministers on climate and environment issues, sustainable development and the future of the International Whaling Commission. She was Australia’s lead negotiator for the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. She is currently completing a PhD with the Faculty of Law at the University of Tasmania. The title of her thesis is The Green Climate Fund — A Case Study in the Legitimacy of Global Climate Finance Governance. It examines whether the governance of the Green Climate Fund has the features of legitimacy and justice that will enable it to effectively deliver the objectives of the Paris Agreement.
