Vincent-Henri Peuch

Director for Engagement with the EU
Copernicus, CAMS Services

Summary:

As Director for Engagement with the EU, Vincent-Henri Peuch is in charge of the strategic oversight of the Centre's engagement with the European Union, especially in the context of the Copernicus (Space / Earth Observation), Destination Earth (Digital Europe) and Horizon Europe (Research and Innovation) programmes. He is Head of Site in Bonn, where ECMWF has now around 230 staff. With a background as a scientist working on atmospheric composition, he has been involved for about 20 years in Copernicus, most recently as Director of the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (2014-2023). He has extensive experience in the transposition of research into operations, as well as in the management of large-scale international programmes and projects. He is co-author of over 110 international peer-reviewed publications (h-index: 53, ResearchGate) and member of several international scientific and advisory committees including for WMO, CEOS-GGMS and ESA.

Professional interests:
  • Air quality modelling, forecasting and long-range transport of atmospheric pollutants
  • Ozone layer and its recovery
  • Interactions between atmospheric composition and climate
  • Data assimilation of satellite and in situ observations of atmospheric constituents
  • Cloud computing and big data 
  • Research to operations transition and development of user-driven applications
  • Engagement and collaboration with international institutions
Career background:

Education

  • PhD, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, France (awarded 1996, with "Félicitations du Jury") with part of the research carried out at Yale University, USA. Thesis: “Numerical modelling of elementary chemical reaction steps involved in catalytic processes”. Supervisor: Prof. Bernard Bigot.
  • Ingénieur de la Météorologie, Ecole Nationale de la Météorologie, France (awarded 1997).
  • Executive Master in Management of International Organizations, SDA Bocconi, Italy (awarded 2016).

Professional Experience

  • Since 2024: Director for Engagement with the EU and Head of Site in Bonn, ECMWF, Bonn, Germany
  • 2015-2023: Director of the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (and Deputy Director of Copernicus Services 2017-2023), ECMWF, Reading, UK and from 10/2021 onwards Bonn, Germany
  • 2011-2015: Head of the Atmospheric Composition Division, Research Department, ECMWF, Reading, UK
  • 2005-2011: Leader of the Atmospheric Composition Modelling and Data Assimilation Research Team at the National Centre for Meteorological Research (CNRM), Météo-France, Toulouse, France
  • 1997-2005: Scientist (atmospheric composition modelling and data assimilation) at the National Centre for Meteorological Research (CNRM), Météo-France, Toulouse, France
External recognitions
  • Co-chair of the Advisory Group for the Global Greenhouse Gas Watch (G3W) and member of the management group of the Infrastructure Commission (INFCOM) of the World Meteorological Organisation
  • Vice-chair of the Working Group Climate of the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) and the Coordination Group for Meteorological Satellites (CGMS)
  • Member of the Steering Committee of the Global Atmospheric Watch (GAW) Programme of the World Meteorological Organisation
  • Member of the Advisory Committee on Earth Observation (ACEO) of the European Space Agency
  • Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the IAGOS and ACTRIS European Research Infrastructures
  • President of the Scientific Committee of the French environment agency Ineris
  • Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (Germany) for the research field "Earth & Environment"