Prof. H. Christopher Frey is the Glenn E. Futrell Distinguished University Professor of environmental engineering in the Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering at North Carolina State University, USA. He also serves as associate dean for research in the College of Engineering. An internationally recognized leader in environmental risk analysis, exposure science, and uncertainty analysis, his research has fundamentally shaped how variability and uncertainty are quantified and incorporated into environmental decision-making. His pioneering work established many of the probabilistic methods that are now routinely applied in emissions inventories, exposure assessment, environmental modelling, and health risk analysis, providing a rigorous foundation for evidence-based policy and risk-informed decision-making.

Prof. Frey has held numerous scientific leadership roles, including Chair of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, Assistant Administrator of the Office of Research and Development and Science Advisor at the U.S. EPA, and contributor to international scientific assessments including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the World Health Organization (WHO). His work has consistently bridged scientific innovation and public policy, advancing practical approaches for managing complex environmental and climate risks.

A long-time collaborator, Prof. Frey has contributed significantly to joint research at HKUST on probabilistic exposure assessment, urban air quality, and health risk communication, including the PRAISE-HK project. At CARE2026, he will deliver the opening scene-setting keynote for Day 2, examining how extreme rainfall, flooding, sea-level rise, and landslides interact to create cascading failures across urban systems, and will moderate the subsequent expert panel on integrated water-related climate risks.