Caroline King-Okumu manages international development opportunities at the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. She has a longstanding interest in dryland ecosystems in Africa and extensive experience of managing complex programmes in fragile and difficult dryland environments. She works collaboratively with a range of international institutions and actors, including UN, CGIAR, international NGOs, national government and University-based programmes such as WOCAT and others. Her recent work on drought impact and vulnerability assessment has been instrumental in the creation of an Intergovernmental Working Group on Drought at the UNCCD.