I am Professor in Climate and Society in the Geography Department at the University of Exeter, UK.

My research explores the social science dimensions of climate variability and change, particularly focusing on communication and public engagement. My research specialism is the visual communication of climate change. I have held two fellowships in this area, an ESRC Future Leaders Fellowship (2012-2017) and a Leverhulme Research Fellowship (2021-2023). My book, ‘The Visual Life of Climate Change‘ (Bristol University Press) brings together much of this work (published December 2025; paperback at £24.99 or online via Open Access).

I am Co-Director of the Centre for Climate Communication and Data Science (C3DS; 2023-2026) funded by the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF). I am also a Co-Director of ACCESS (Advancing Capacity for Climate and Environment Social Science, 2021-2026) funded by the ESRC. I have been Co-Director of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion for the Geography department at the University of Exeter since 2023.

I am no longer using Twitter, but my tweets on climate change, communication, media, visuals, imagery and on working towards a more inclusive research culture can still be found @SaffronJONeill. I occasionally use LinkedIn. However, the best way to contact me is to drop me an email.
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