Biography

Sam is Professor of Climate Change Economics and Policy at the Smith School and the School of Geography and the Environment. Before moving to Oxford, Sam was Director of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics, where he remains a Visiting Professor.

Sam works at the intersection of research and public policy. He is interested in the policy interventions and governance arrangements that are needed for a smooth transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions. He has also worked on climate change adaptation and sustainable growth in developing countries.

Sam was an inaugural member of the UK Climate Change Committee and its Adaptation Sub-Committee, and he served as a non-executive Director of British International Investment, the UK's development finance institution.

Earlier in his career, Sam worked at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), where he was Deputy Chief Economist, the World Bank and the Global Environment Facility. He has studied economics at the University of Berne (Switzerland), the London School of Economics and University College London.

Recent Publications

Feb 2026
Policy Briefing
How to invigorate and complete the fossil fuel transition
Sam Fankhauser ,  Myles Allen ,  Johanna Arlinghaus ,  Kaya Axelsson ,  Mirte Boot ,  Aoife Brophy ,  Ben Caldecott ,  Emily Cox ,  Alice Evatt ,  Siyu Feng ,  Benjamin Franta ,  Steven Fries ,  Cameron Hepburn ,  Conor Hickey ,  Stuart Jenkins ,  Injy Johnstone ,  Radhika Khosla ,  Javier Lezaun ,  Sam Loni ,  Alexis McGivern ,  Jessica Omukuti ,  Stephen M. Smith ,  Sugandha Srivastav ,  Joseph Stemmler ,  Ingrid Sundvor ,  Thom Wetzer
Nov 2025
Report
The economic benefits of renewable energy and how to share them
Sam Fankhauser ,  Lorenzo Agnelli ,  Maeve Collins Tobin ,  Fatima Khushnud ,  Hannah Luscombe ,  Jessica Omukuti ,  Emilien Ravigné ,  Sugandha Srivastav ,  Mathias Weidinger
Aug 2025
Journal
The revised oxford principles for net zero aligned carbon offsetting
in Environmental Research Letters
Injy Johnstone ,  Myles Allen ,  Kaya Axelsson ,  Ben Caldecott ,  Nick Eyre ,  Samuel Fankhauser ,  Thomas Hale ,  Cameron Hepburn ,  Conor Hickey ,  Stuart Jenkins ,  Radhika Khosla ,  Stephen Lezak ,  Alison Smith ,  Stephen M. Smith ,  Audrey Wagner
Jun 2025
Blog
Policy Pathways to Achieve Net-Zero Goals: A New Look at Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR)
Siyu Feng ,  Johanna Arlinghaus ,  Joseph Stemmler ,  Stephen M. Smith ,  Samuel Fankhauser
May 2025
Policy Briefing
Policy Evaluation and Selection to Accelerate Geological Carbon Dioxide Removal Deployment
Siyu Feng ,  Joseph Stemmler ,  Johanna Arlinghaus ,  Samuel Fankhauser ,  Stephen M. Smith
May 2025
Working Paper
A taxonomy of policies to support geological carbon dioxide removal
Johanna Arlinghaus ,  Siyu Feng ,  Joseph Stemmler ,  Samuel Fankhauser ,  Stephen M. Smith
Jan 2025
Journal
Climate Change Mitigation Policies for Developing Countries
in Review of Environmental Economics and Policy
Juliette Caucheteux ,  Sam Fankhauser ,  Sugandha Srivastav
Oct 2024
Journal
A 10-point plan to scale up renewable energy in the Global South
in Climate Policy
Sam Fankhauser ,  Cameron Hepburn ,  Stephanie Hirmer ,  Tonny Kukeera ,  Dhruv Singh ,  Ingrid Sundvor ,  Philipp A. Trotter ,  Pu Yang
Aug 2024
Journal
Policy support for BECCS and DACCS in Europe: the view of market participants
in Environmental Research Letters
Pu Yang ,  Sam Fankhauser ,  Stephen M. Smith ,  Ingrid Sundvor ,  Stephanie Hirmer ,  Injy Johnstone ,  Joseph Stemmler
Apr 2024
Journal
Turning a groundswell of climate action into ground rules for net zero
in Nature Climate Change
Thomas Hale ,  Thom Wetzer ,  Selam Kidane Abebe ,  Myles Allen ,  Amir Amel-Zadeh ,  John Armour ,  Kaya Axelsson ,  Ben Caldecott ,  Lucilla Dias ,  Sam Fankhauser ,  Benjamin Franta ,  Cameron Hepburn ,  Kennedy Mbeva ,  Lavanya Rajamani ,  Steve Smith ,  Rupert Stuart-Smith
Feb 2024
Report
Oxford Principles for Net Zero Aligned Carbon Offsetting (revised 2024)
Kaya Axelsson ,  Audrey Wagner ,  Injy Johnstone ,  Myles Allen ,  Ben Caldecott ,  Nick Eyre ,  Sam Fankhauser ,  Thomas Hale ,  Cameron Hepburn ,  Conor Hickey ,  Radhika Khosla ,  Stephen Lezak ,  Eli Mitchell-Larson ,  Yadvinder Malhi ,  Nathalie Seddon ,  Alison Smith ,  Stephen M. Smith
Feb 2024
Journal
Development transitions for fossil fuel-producing low and lower–middle income countries in a carbon-constrained world
in Nature Energy
Vivien Foster ,  Philipp A. Trotter ,  Sven Werner ,  Melin Niedermayer ,  Yacob Mulugetta ,  Ploy Achakulwisut ,  Aoife Brophy ,  Navroz K. Dubash ,  Sam Fankhauser ,  Adam Hawkes ,  Stephanie Hirmer ,  Stuart Jenkins ,  Sam Loni ,  Alexis McGivern ,  Khamphone Nanthavong ,  Benedict Probst ,  Steve Pye ,  Vladimir Russo ,  Gregor Semieniuk ,  Carlos Shenga ,  Vignesh Sridharan ,  Sugandha Srivastav ,  Youba Sokona ,  Lucas Somavilla Croxatto ,  Pu Yang
Dec 2023
Report
Rolling out renewables in the Global South: A developer perspective
Sam Fankhauser ,  Cameron Hepburn ,  Stephanie Hirmer ,  Tonny Kukeera ,  Dhruv Singh ,  Ingrid Sundvor ,  Philipp A. Trotter ,  Pu Yang
Sept 2023
Journal
Net zero portfolio targets for development finance institutions: Challenges and solutions
in Global Policy
Sam Fankhauser ,  Sugandha Srivastav ,  Ingrid Sundvor ,  Stephanie Hirmer ,  Gireesh Shrimali
Jul 2023
Policy Briefing
Reforming the Global Financial Architecture to Drive a Resilient Net-Zero Transition
Nicola Ranger ,  Brian O'Callaghan ,  Fulvia Marotta ,  Sam Fankhauser
Jun 2023
Blog
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Recent Events

21 Jan 25
@12:30

Panel discussion: 'Post-COP29 Debrief: Reflections on a divisive deal'

Oxford Martin School Lectures

Sam Fankhauser, Thomas Hale, Injy Johnstone, Jodi-Ann Wang, Ushika Kidd & Flora Prideaux

Online Event
Fankhauser