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Dr. Bahareh Kamranzad

​Lecturer - Chancellor's Fellow

​Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

University of Strathclyde

United Kingdom

https://pureportal.strath.ac.uk/en/persons/bahareh-kamranzad

Email: bahareh.kamranzad  (at)  strath.ac.uk

Bio

I am a Lecturer and Chancellor's Fellow in the ​Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Strathclyde and a Fellow of UArctic x Lloyd’s Register Foundation. I have a PhD degree in Civil and Hydraulic/Coastal Engineering, an MSc in Civil Engineering-Hydraulic Structures, and a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering. I am a leader within Strathclyde Centre for Doctoral Training in "AI-Based Ocean Forecasts for Marine Operation" mArIneCAST CDT. My research interests lie within the field of Coastal Engineering and Ocean Climate, and my primary research focuses on investigating the impacts of climate change on oceanic conditions, coastal processes, ocean renewable energies (OREs), extreme events, and coastal hazards, protection & resilience. To advance these research interests, she employs a range of computational tools, including numerical models, soft computing methods, and hybrid approaches for the simulation of oceanic conditions including wave modelling, data assimilation, and regional downscaling of climate projections. Prior to joining the University of Strathclyde, I worked for six years (2016-2022) in Japan, initially at the Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto University under the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Postdoctoral Fellowship (acceptance rate: less than 10%), and then, at the Hakubi Center for Advanced Research, Kyoto University as an Assistant Professor ​(acceptance rate: around 3%). Furthermore, I was a visiting academic at the Faculty of Natural Sciences, Imperial College, London.

The outcomes of my research have been published in over 80 peer-reviewed publications, primarily in high-tier journals such as Nature Climate Change, Scientific Reports, Energy, Renewable Energy, and Ocean Engineering, as well as leading international conferences. As a result of my contributions, I have received several awards and recognitions, including being ranked among the world’s top 2% of scientists in 2023 (by Elsevier and Stanford University) and being named an Emerging Sustainability Leader by the MDPI Sustainability Foundation and the University of Basel. I have delivered invited talks at prestigious institutions such as Delft University of Technology, Imperial College London, Kyoto University, and Université Grenoble Alpes, demonstrating my international recognition and fostering global research collaborations. These achievements have enabled me to secure highly competitive academic positions and fellowships in Japan, UK and Europe. Additionally, I have successfully obtained international research grants and led multiple projects in Japan, China, and the UK on climate change impacts on ocean dynamics and renewable energy resources. I am also a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), and teache in the International Joint Education Programme (IJEP) at the University of Strathclyde. Moreover, I serve as the Deputy Director of Postgraduate Research in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. On the international front, I am the chair and co-founder of the International Integrated Wave Energy Research Group (IIWER), and a member of the Science Board of the Atmospheric and Hydrospheric Sciences Section, Japan Geoscience Union (JpGU). Additionally, I serve as the Deputy Editor for Ocean Engineering (Elsevier) and Advisory Editorial Board for Coastal Engineering (Elsevier). 

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Research Achievements:

I have made significant contributions to assessing the impact of climate change on the sustainability of ocean renewable energy by utilising numerical modelling, machine learning, and hybrid approaches. My research is highly interdisciplinary, bridging climate science, renewable energy, and oceanography. It has led to the development of novel criteria for evaluating the sustainability of wind and wave energy, improving resource assessment, understanding climatic variations, and enabling climate-adaptive site selection for ocean energy resources. More specifically, I have developed long-term numerical wave models to assess wind and wave energy potential, introducing novel factors to incorporate climate variability into the definition of ocean energy hotspots. I have enhanced the accuracy of regional wave modelling by integrating long-term simulations with data assimilation techniques, using resources such as reanalysis datasets, satellite altimetry, and local measurements. Additionally, I have worked on extreme value analysis, and applied both mean and extreme wind and wave climate data to define distinct climate zones at regional scales.

Beyond numerical modelling, I have applied machine learning techniques to ocean wave forecasting and hybrid hindcasting, introducing innovative input combinations that significantly improve wave climate predictions. Moreover, I have conducted wind and wave climate projections using different generations of Global Climate Models (GCMs) under various climate scenarios, and developed a novel hybrid downscaling method that combines dynamical and statistical approaches to generate high-resolution GCM outputs. By incorporating climate projections, I have identified areas with higher wave climate stability, considering both short-term fluctuations and long-term trends. Expanding the modelling period to account for long-term climate variability, I introduced new criteria for selecting optimal wave energy extraction sites based on inter- and intra-annual variations and decadal-scale changes. Additionally, I have developed a comprehensive methodology for selecting suitable sites and technologies for wave farm installations. My expertise has contributed to the generation of high-resolution ocean climate datasets at multiple scales, including global, regional (e.g., South China Sea, North Pacific, Indian Ocean), and local (e.g., Reunion Island, Sea of Japan). These datasets have been widely used in offshore renewable energy projects and climate risk assessments. 
 

For more details, please see the Publications and Projects.

Employment

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Jan 2023-Now                University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom

​Lecturer - Chancellor's Fellow

​​Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
United Kingdom

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Oct 2018-Dec 2023         Kyoto University, Japan

Assistant Professor

The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research

Graduate School of Advanced Integrated Studies in Human Survivability (GSAIS)

Highly competitive position (acceptance rate: around 3%) 

 

Mar 2022-Sep 2022        Imperial College London, United Kingdom 

Visiting Researcher

​Department of Physics

Faculty of Natural Sciences

United Kingdom

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Oct 2021-Feb 2022        Brunel University London, United Kingdom

Visiting Senior Lecturer

Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering

United Kingdom

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Nov 2016-Sep 2018        Kyoto University, Japan

JSPS (Japan Society for the Promotion of Science) Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Disaster Prevention Research Institute

Competitive position (acceptance rate: less than 10%)

 

Oct 2013-Nov 2016         Iranian National Institute for Oceanography and Atmospheric Science (INIOAS), Iran

Assistant Professor

Ocean Engineering and Technology Research Center (OETRC)

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Aug 2010-Sep 2013       Iranian National Institute for Oceanography and Atmospheric Science (INIOAS), Iran

Research Associate

Ocean Engineering and Technology Research Center (OETRC)

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Awards & Recognition

  • 2023                      Top 2% of Scientists Globally for 2023 by Elsevier and Stanford University, https://elsevier.digitalcommonsdata.com/datasets/btchxktzyw/6

  • 2023                      Emerging Sustainability Leader Award, MDPI Sustainability Foundation & University of Basel https://mdpi-foundation.org/emerging-award

  • 2020                     Travel Grant: “Exploration France 2020” award, for collaboration with the Université Sorbonne Paris Nord & IPSL Laboratory of Oceanography and Climate: Experiments and Numerical Approaches (LOCEAN), awarded by the Embassy of France in Japan https://www.oc.kyoto-u.ac.jp/exchange/aida/post_624/

  • 2018                      Travel Grant: “Talented young scientist” travel grant to participate in Young Scholar Forum at Sichuan University, Chengdu, China

  • 2018                      Competitive Research Grant and position: Full-time faculty member (Assistant Prof.) position (Global Type), The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research, Kyoto University, Japan ​(highly competitive position, acceptance rate: around 3%)

  • 2018                     Competitive Research Grant and position: Sêr Cymru II MSCA (Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions) COFUND postdoctoral fellowship at Swansea University, UK, funded by the European Commission and Welsh Government (competitive position)

  • 2016                     Competitive Research Grant and position: JSPS Postdoctoral Research fellowship and grant-in-aid by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science for the project “Projection of wave climate and wave energy due to the climate change”

  • 2016                     Travel Grant: British Council young scientist grant for taking part in the UK-Iran Researcher Links Workshop: ‘Water Management'

  • 2015                      Travel Grant: 26th IUGG general assembly travel grant, Prague, Czech Republic

  • 2014                     Travel Grant and Award: IOC-WESTPAC young scientists travel grant, NhaTrang, Vietnam

  • 2012                      Award: PhD Scholarship for doctoral studies, Iran University of Science and Technology, awarded by the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology

  • 2012                     Award: Excellent Research award for the project "Evaluation of wave energy potential in the Caspian Sea, Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman", awarded by the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology, 13th best researchers' festival, Tehran, Iran

  • 2012                     Award: Awardee in student competition of 18th Congress of the Asia and Pacific Division of the International Association for Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research (IAHR-APD), Jeju, Korea

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Institutional Citizenship and Leadership

•    2023-now       Deputy Director of Postgraduate Research, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
University of Strathclyde 
•    2018-2022     Member of seminar working group, Hakubi Center for Advanced Research, Kyoto University
•    2019-2022     Responsible for handling Office Hours, GSAIS, Kyoto University
•    2018-2019    Organiser of Hakubi Center for Advance Research’s Autumn Camps, Kyoto University
•    2016-2017    Head of Graduate Studies, INIOAS

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Invited Academic talks

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  • 2025/1/20, Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland (MASTS), University of St Andrews, “Coastal Resilience in a Changing Climate: Challenges and Opportunities” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKvV0PSEk1o

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  • 2024/12/05, ISPF-Transnational perspectives NBS, water and food security in Scotland and Egypt, seminar & workshop, in collaboration with the University of Ain Shams, Egypt, “Sustainable Coasts in a Changing Climate”

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  • 2024/11/1, The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research, Kyoto University, Japan, “Navigating Future of Coastal Areas in a Changing Climate”

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  • 2024/10/31, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Japan, “Downscaling of Climate Projections”

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  • 2024/10/30, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo, Japan, “Coastal Engineering and Ocean Climate”

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  • 2022/09/22 "Wave resource assessment and climate change impacts in the Indian Ocean", BRGM, France

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  • 2022/09/12 "Large-scale computing in coastal engineering; Modeling the ocean wave climate using numerical and soft-computing models", Grenoble Computer Science Laboratory - LIGLAB, Université Grenoble Alpes, and Sorbonne Paris Nord University, France LINK

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  • 2022/06/08 “Impact of climate variability and change on the sustainability of ocean wave energy and selection criteria for suitable locations and technologies”, Fluid Mechanics Group, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Imperial College London, UK  LINK

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  • 2022/06/07 “Net-zero emission with ocean renewables in a changing climate”, Space and Atmospheric Physics (SPAT), Faculty of Natural Sciences, Imperial College London, UK  LINK

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  • 2022/04/11 Webinar: “New methodology for selecting the suitable location/technology for extracting energy from the ocean waves and a case study in the South China Sea”, Applied and Computational Mathematics Seminars, University College Dublin, Ireland (online)  LINK

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  • 2022/03/11 Seminar: “Sustainability of ocean renewables”, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, UK

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  • 2022/01/28 Webinar: “Ocean wave energy potential and its sustainability under a changing climate", ​Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Brunel University London, UK

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  • 2021/05/25 Webinar: “Sustainability of Wave Energy in a Changing Climate", Discussion for Sustainable Futures, Kyoto University, Japan

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  • 2021/05/07 Webinar: “Sustainability of Wave Energy in a Changing Climate", Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Canada LINK

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  • 2021/03/17 “Combining methodologies on the impact of inter and intra-annual variation of wave energy on selection of the suitable location and technology" Organizer: Zienkiewicz Centre for Computational Engineering, College of Engineering, Swansea University, UK (Online)

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  • 2020/06/09 Event: Hakubi seminar, Title: “Where are the suitable coastlines in Japan for energy extraction from the ocean waves?" Organizer: The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research, Kyoto University, Japan LINK

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  • ​2020/2/14 Event: Joint lecture with Heidelberg Centres for the Environment at Heidelberg University, Title: "Coastal Areas: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development", Organizer: Kyoto University European Center in Heidelberg and the Heidelberg University Office (HUOK), Japan LINK  NEWS

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  • 2020/01/15 Event: International mobility program: Cultural Identities Shaping Environmental Regulation in Japan, Title: “Climate Change and Ocean Wave Energy” Organizer: Kyoto University and the University of Newcastle, Kyoto, Japan

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  • 2019/12/05 Title: "Sustainability of wave energy resources in Northeast Asia", Organizer: Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST), Okinawa, Japan LINK

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  • 2019/06/21 Event: K-CONNEX retreat camp, Title: "Climate change impact assessment on ocean wave energy and coastal hazards and reducing the uncertainties in pursuit of sustainable development", Organizer: K-CONNEX, Kyoto University, Osaka, Japan Twitter​

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  • 2019/06/03 "Downscaling of Historical and Future Projections of Wave Climate; from Indian Ocean to Sri Lanka", University of Moratuwa, Colombo, Sri Lanka (Online presentation)

 

  • 2019/03/19 Title: "Future change of wave energy resources due to climate change and sustainability assessment", Organizer: Delft University of Technology, Delft LINK

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  • 2019/03/15 Event: Annual Report Meeting, Title: "Sustainability of wave energy resources and climate change impacts", Organizer: The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research, Kyoto University, Kyoto LINK 

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  • 2018/12/18 Title: "Projection of wave climate and wave energy due to global warming", Organizer: Sichuan University, Chengdu, China  LINK

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  • 2018/11/27 Title: “Future projection of wave resources in the Indian Ocean and new criteria on locating wave farms for sustainable development”, Organizer: University of Moratuwa, Colombo. Sri Lanka  LINK LINK 

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  • 2018/05/21 Event: COWCLIP meeting, Title: “Wave climate projection in Indian Ocean based on super-high-resolution MRI-AGCM3.2S wind field”, Organizer: UNESCO headquarters, Paris, France  LINK

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  • 2017/04/19 Title: “Latest development in wave climate and wave energy assessment”, Organizer: Department of Ocean Engineering, College of Engineering, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China

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  • 2016/4 Event: International training workshop on "Climate Change and the Caspian Sea", Title: Sustainability of wave energy in Caspian Sea, Organizer: INIOAS, Tehran, Iran

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Teaching​

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Postgraduate degree
           

•    2019-2021    “Global Survivability Risk Management” (2 Unit), Kyoto University, Co-Lecturer

 

•    2014    "Coastal Zone Management" (2 Unit), School of Civil Eng., IUST, Visiting lecturer 

 

•    2013-2014    "Advanced Hydraulics", School of Civil Eng., IUST, Visiting lecturer

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•    2013-2014     “Numerical wave modeling (SWAN)”, INIOAS, Lecturer 

 

•    2009-2012    "Advanced Hydraulics", School of Civil Eng., IUST, TA

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•    2011    "Design of coastal structures", School of Civil Eng., IUST, TA

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•    2010     "Water Quality Modeling", School of Civil Eng., IUST, TA 

 


Undergraduate degree

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•    2023        “Water and Environmental Systems“ (10 CREDITS), University of Strathclyde and Yunnan University (China)
part of International Joint Education Programme (IJEP), Year 3, 2023, Lectruer 

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•    2021    “Ocean Renewable Energies" (2 Unit), Kyoto University, Lecturer 

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•    2019    “Introduction to Coastal Engineering" (2 Unit), Kyoto University, Lecturer 

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•    2017    “Coast and Shore Protection”, Kyoto University and Kansai University, Guest lecturer 

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Knowledge Exchange

  • April 2024       "Scottish National Adaptation Plan (SNAP) Consultation- SSAC Roundtable”

  • March 2024    Organiser of the webinar “Building Collaborative Relationships Between Researchers in Scotland and Japan”, in collaboration with JSPS London, University of Strathclyde LINK

  • 2023               Establishing “Strathclyde Japan Group” with colleagues from various departments to promote research and knowledge exchange with Japanese research institutions, University of Strathclyde

  • 2023               Collaboration with industrial partners (SSE Renewables and Intertek) to secure industrial student projects for CL973 (Independent Study in Collaboration with Industry), University of Strathclyde

  • 2023               Contributing to and representing the department in "NZTC Tech-X Development Partner's Day" event at the Net Zero Technology Centre, Aberdeen, Scotland, University of Strathclyde

  • 2023                Joint meeting with "Enterprise Singapore", University of Strathclyde

  • 2019-2022      Collaborator of AI DA (Ambitious Intelligence.Dynamic Acceleration) program, Kyoto University

  • 2021-now        Organiser of public webinars by Intl. Integrated Wave Energy Research Group https://iiwer.org/

 

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Hosting External Visitors:

  • Dr Reza Hashemi, Associate Professor, University of Rhode Island, United States (May 2024), University of Strathclyde, UK

  • Theophile Avenel, Researcher, Polytech Nantes and Orange S.A. (formerly France Télécom S.A.), France, (June-August 2024), University of Strathclyde, UK

  • Yi Wen, Researcher, Sichuan University, China (Jan 2020), Kyoto University, Japan

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Invited Public Talks & Contributions to Society

  • 2024 One Ocean Hub engage event, University of Strathclyde

2024/5 Speaker and panelist, "From the coast to the ocean depths: Co-developing innovative solutions for sustainable development" LINK

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  • 2022 Japan-China High-level Expert Symposium on Energy Transition (Online) LINK  LINK

2022/06/29, Title: "Energy Transition with Ocean Renewable Energies",

Organized by Sakura Science Program Headquarters, Japan Science and Technology Agency, and Department of Foreign Expert Services, Ministry of Science and Technology, China  

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  • Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation, London, UK LINK

2022/02/17 Title: “Reaching Net-Zero Emissions with Ocean Renewable Energies, and Japan's ocean wave energy potential and stability”

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  • 2021 Japan-China High-Level Researcher Exchange Meeting (Online) LINK  

2021/07/02 Panelist in the Marine Science section (Climate and Environment)

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  • Taiwanese-German Sustainability Exchange Program 2021 (Online) LINK

Panelist and speaker at the Virtual Fish Bowl: Innovative Technologies in Renewable Energy Generation

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  • AI for SDGs-How Can AI Help Solve Environmental Challenges? Japanese-German-French public Conference, German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Regional Office Tokyo, Japan LINK Program   Twitter      Live streaming  Twitter

2019/10/24

Speaker, Title: "Towards the SDGs with ocean renewable energies; Application of AI in reducing the uncertainties for a sustainable development".

Panelist for the panel discussion: "", Organizer: German Centre for Research and Innovation Tokyo (DWIH Tokyo)

"After story" published on Kyoto University website: Link   Annual report​

 

2019/05/11 Panelist and speaker, Title: "Sustainable development of marine renewable energies considering the impact of climate change"

 

  • Science Dialogue Program (JSPS), Akashi-Kita Senior High School, Hyogo, Japan

“My life as a researcher and introducing my research in coastal engineering and impact of climate change on ocean wave energy”

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On the Media & Reports

 

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External Scientific Contributions

 

As Editor:

 

As Reviewer:

Journals: Scientific Report, Applied Energy, Renewable Energy, Energy, Weather, Ocean Engineering, Applied Ocean Research, Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Dynamics of Atmospheres and Oceans, Energies, Climate Dynamics, Oceanologia, Journal of Ocean Engineering and Marine Energy, Atmosphere, Natural Hazards, Ocean Dynamics, Frontiers in Energy, Data in Brief, Water, Energy Reports, Dynamics of Atmospheres and Oceans, Energies, Computers & Geosciences, Weather, JGR, etc.

  • Reviewer of EPSRC ORE Impact Hub Flexible Funding call 2023, by Supergen ORE Hub

 

As Conference Organiser:

  • Scientific Advisory Committee, “10th Short Course/Conference on Applied Coastal Research 2023” LINK

  • Session co-convener, “A-OS20: Ocean renewable energy: resource, impacts and technologies”, Japan Geoscience Union Meeting (JpGU) 2022 LINK

  • Session convener, “A-OS08: Ocean renewable energy: resource, impacts and technologies”,  Japan Geoscience Union Meeting (JpGU) 2021 LINK

  • Session co-convener “A-OS16: Ocean renewable energy: resource, impacts and technologies”,  JpGU-AGU joint Meeting 2020, In collaboration with Prof. Simon Neill (Bangor University) and Prof. Zhaoqing Yang (PNNL)   Session Description    LINK

  • Head of Scientific Committee, 17th Marine Industries Conference, 2015, Iran

 

As Scientific Committee/Referee:

  • ​Technical Committee, 2024 11th International Conference on Coastal and Ocean Engineering, China https://iccoe.org/

  • International Program Committees, 6th International Conference on New Energy and Applications, Kyoto, Japan

  • Technical Committees, 12th International Conference on Renewable and Clean Energy, Shiga, Japan,

  • Scientific Committee, International Symposium on Natural Hazards and Disaster Management (2018-2022)

  • Member of Scientific Committee, 5th Regional Conference on Climate Change, Tehran, Iran. Feb 2016

  • Member of Scientific Committee, 6th International Offshore Conference, Tehran, Iran. 2015

  • Member of Scientific Committee, First National Conference on Renewable Energy Management, Iran. 2014

  • Reviewer, 10th Asia Pacific Conference on Sustainable Energy & Environmental Technologies, S Korea. 2015

  • Reviewer, 12th Iranian Hydraulic Association conference (IHA), 2013

  • Reviewer, 12th International Coastal Symposium (ICS), UK. 2013

  • Executive director of “International Journal of coastal engineering and offshore structures”, INIOAS, 2013

  • Executive Committee,14th Marine Industries Conference, 2012

 

Membership:

  • Member of “Scottish Energy Forum”

  • Member of “Ocean Wind Waves SIG”, National Oceanography Center, UK

  • Member of "Oceanographic Society of Japan"

  • Member of "American Geophysical Union (AGU)"

  • Member of "Japan Geoscience Union (JpGU) "

  • Member of “U.S. Coastal Research Program - Research, Science, Coastal (USCRP)”

  • Member of "Japan Society for Natural Disaster Science (JSNDS)"

  • Member of “Japan Society for the Promotion of Science alumni network (JSPS-Net)”

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