Aurecon focuses on climate change with key appointment in Asia

23 January 2020 – Climate change is reshaping the environment, economics and human lives. To help clients future-proof against the challenges, Aurecon appointed a climate change mitigation expert to help develop resilient infrastructure in Asia.

International engineering, design and advisory company Aurecon has appointed Stéphanie Groen as Director of Coastal & Climate Change in Asia with effect from 6 January 2020. In this newly created role, Stéphanie will establish and lead Aurecon’s Coastal and Climate Change practice in Asia.

“As part of our commitment to engineer a better future for Asia, we created a new position to help our clients face the challenges and opportunities around climate change,” said Stephane Asselin, Managing Director – Asia. “Climate change is impacting people’s lives, economics and the environment, so we are delighted Stéphanie is joining us to strengthen our coastal and environmental practice.”

Up to 3.4 billion people could be living in water-stressed areas of Asia by 2050, according to a recent report from the Asian Development Bank. The Asia Development Bank also found that Southeast Asia is likely to sustain larger economic losses from climate change than most other areas in the world – the region’s GDP could be reduced by 11 per cent due to climate change.

“Stéphanie is a proven leader in the water and environmental consultancy industries. She will be leading our Aurecon teams to help clients mitigate the impact of climate change through human-centred design,” Stephane said.

About Stéphanie Groen

Based in Singapore, Stéphanie will leverage her 18 years of professional experience in water, marine and environmental consultancy to help clients mitigate the risk from climate change in this increasingly important area of engineering.

Over Stéphanie’s career, she has delivered many large marine environmental consultancy projects addressing land reclamation and infrastructure development in Asia, with the main focus on Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Stéphanie has progressed through her career, rising through the ranks with the environmental consultant DHI Singapore. Having started as a project manager she eventually went on to serve as the managing director from 2013 to 2019, overseeing the business performance and growth of the firm.

Some of the key projects over Stéphanie’s career include:

• Development of a climate change adaption framework for Singapore’s Building & Construction Authority (BCA).
• Advising the Singapore Government Agencies Maritime and Port Authority, JTC Corporation and Housing & Development Board on marine dredging and reclamation works for the development of Tuas Port, Jurong Island, Pulau Tekong and Pasir Panjang Terminals.
• Development of a disaster risk assessment for the state of Uttarakhand in India for the World Bank.

“At a time when we’re seeing accelerating impacts which are related to climate change, proper risk assessment, planning and adaptation to long-term visions will be vital for companies in Asia to develop their projects for a more sustainable future,” Stéphanie said.

“I look forward to creating a strong foundation for Aurecon’s Coastal & Climate Change practice in Asia and delivering human-centred designs that are both sustainable and future-ready.”

Asia in focus

Aurecon is focused on engineering a better future in Asia, delivering a range of infrastructure projects in the region, Aurecon has also supported infrastructure development in the region, particularly road and rail systems, and renewable energy, combining the latest technologies with human-centred design to deliver future-ready developments.

Iconic projects the company has delivered in the region include the West Kowloon Station in Hong Kong, Vincom Landmark 81 Tower in Vietnam, the Shanghai Tower in China, and the Mauritius’ Metro Express as part of a Singapore-Mauritius government collaboration.