Noelle O'Brien

Noelle O'Brien

Director, Climate Change
Climate Change, Resilience, and Environment Cluster (CCRE)
Climate Change and Sustainable Development Department (CCSD)


Noelle is the Director, Climate Change for ADB's Climate Change and Sustainable Development Department.

Previously, Noelle was a Principal Climate Change Specialist for the Pacific region and has worked on expanding ADB’s work on mitigation investments and scaling up adaptation investments in the 14 Pacific member countries, as well as raising climate finance. A comprehensive climate and disaster risk assessment to inform resilience planning for Tonga has been a high point of her recent work. Prior to joining ADB, Noelle spent 7 years working with UKAID’s Strengthening Adaptation and Resilience to Climate Change program in Kenya. The program invested in achieving transformational change by scaling up public and private sector innovation and investment in low carbon and adaptation products, services and assets. Noelle holds a Natural Science Degree from Trinity College Dublin and Masters’ Degrees in Applied Environmental Science and Development Management and has worked with the Mekong River Commission, the Center for People’s and Forests and a number of international organizations in Southeast Asia and Africa.