Dr Melissa Lazenby is a Doctor of climate science, with strong experience in the field of climate research and analysis over southern Africa as well as being highly passionate about teaching at University level with 9 years of teaching experience at Sussex University in climate change. Her PhD thesis focused on process-based analysis of the climate of southern Africa, as well as the mechanisms of change and the amount of uncertainty associated with projected model changes in precipitation. She has two degrees in Meteorology from University of Pretoria, South Africa, and her PhD in African Climate Change was completed at Sussex University.