Jessica Weinkle is an Associate Professor in the Department of Public and International Affairs at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Her research focuses on the interface of science, policy and politics particularly in the area of catastrophic weather risk and finance, and state level science advice. Her current research topic is in conflicts of interest within climate science. She has published widely in the academic literature, recently started a substack, Conflicted, and provided testimony to the United States Senate. Jessica holds a doctorate in Environmental Studies from the University of Colorado Boulder, a Master of Arts in Climate and Society from Columbia University, and a bachelors from the University of Texas at Austin.