Rob McHenry
Executive-in-Residence
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Rob McHenry joins SilverLining as Executive-in-Residence to explore opportunities focused on atmospheric security. He most recently served as the Deputy Director and Acting Director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
Rob’s career has centered around advanced technology development in the public and private sectors, from startups to large organizations. He started his career as a nuclear submarine officer, held previous roles as a DARPA technical contractor and program manager, served as the COO of the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) and has founded two companies. His expertise is in the conceptualization, technical development and value capture of complex interconnected systems.
Rob served on the 2021 National Academy of Sciences Committee report, Reflecting Sunlight, which provided recommendations for research and governance of climate interventions.
Media
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![The word 'Votes' written over orange lightning bolt graphics with small star shapes around.]()
Volts: How to think about Solar Radiation Management
February 2023
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![A woman in a white suit standing at a podium on a stage with a large red TED logo behind her.]()
TED Talk: Emergency medicine for our climate fever
August 2019
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![Conference room at the Policy Hub International event discussing near-term climate risks and interventions, with a banner displaying the event's topic and a C2ES logo.]()
Paper series with climate law experts Sue Biniaz and Daniel Bodansky
2020-2021
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![A woman and a man having a conversation outdoors in a park. The woman is facing the camera, smiling, and wearing a blue jacket with a patterned scarf. The man, seen from behind, is wearing sunglasses and a dark jacket. They are near a pond with trees in the background. The CNN logo is in the bottom right corner, and a black box with white text reads "The Whole Story" in the bottom left corner.]()
CNN: Interview with Chief Climate Correspondent Bill Weir
May 2023
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![View of Earth from space showing atmospheric layers, snow-capped mountains, forests, and lakes below.]()
IEEE Spectrum: Climate Expert: Stop Talking About "Geoengineering"
November 2021
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![Screenshot of a virtual video conference with three participants: Stewart Patrick, Peter Cox, and Kelly Wansser, in separate frames. Stewart is wearing glasses and a brown blazer, Peter has glasses and a blue shirt, Kelly has long blonde hair and glasses.]()
Council on Foreign Relations: The Growing Risk of Climate "Tipping Points"
February 2022
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![Rainy day scene on a busy street in an Asian city with pedestrians holding umbrellas, walking past shops decorated with red lanterns and illuminated signs in Chinese characters.]()
80,000 Hours: Whether to Directly Intervene in Climate
March 2021
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![A crumpled piece of white paper with the handwritten question "Should this exist?" in large black letters, placed on a bright yellow background with a blue "Wait What" label in the top left corner.]()
Should this Exist: Cloud brightening for climate fever
December 2020
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![Poster for TEDx Gateway event featuring speakers John Rives, Kelly Wanser, and Dr. Maria Neira, with the title "Breaking Barriers" and logos of TEDx, Aditya Birla Group, and WHO.]()
TEDxGateway: Breaking Barriers - Fighting the War Against Climate Change via Innovation and Collaboration
September 2020
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![Logo of Future of Life Institute with stylized flame in the letter 'f' and decorative leaf illustrations in the background.]()
Podcast: Climate Change as a Possible Existential Threat
September 2020
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![A group of diverse children gathered around a table, examining a large globe together.]()
Medium: Climate Intervention Research May be Critical to a More Just and Safe Society
September 2020
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![A woman with blonde hair, speaking into a microphone during a panel at an Atlantic Council event. Behind her, a large screen displays a presentation slide titled 'Earth System' with diagrams and list of technologies and capabilities related to Earth systems.]()
Congressional Briefing: American Research Leadership to Ensure a Safe Climate
December 2018
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![Slide showing U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space, & Technology with icons of a government building, a molecular structure, and a circuit board.]()
House Science, Space and Technology Committee Hearing: Geoengineering
November 2017
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![A man holding a young girl in a damaged and muddy area with collapsed infrastructure and other people walking in the background, surrounded by green hills and trees.]()
The Hill: Climate intervention research: An insurance policy for near-term climate risks
December 2022
Publications
Climatic Change, October 2022
Climactic Change, July 2023
SilverLining Report, June 2022
SilverLining Report, April 2019
C2ES, April 2021