Francois Engelbrecht leads the climate studies, modelling and environmental health research group at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). He obtained a Ph.D. in meteorology (University of Pretoria) and specialises in numerical climate model development and regional climate modelling. Francois leads the development of the first African-based Earth system model with national and international partners. He is an associate professor at North-West University and professor at the University of the Witwatersrand.