Robert Nicholls has studied coastal processes and coastal hazards for the last 25 years. He has an international reputation concerning climate change in coastal areas, especially the potential impacts and the possible responses. His research has involved studies across a range of scales from local to the global. A distinctive dimension has been consideration of the coastal zone as a series of interacting systems which facilitates policy analysis. He has advised national governments (e.g. UK, Netherlands, Singapore, the Maldives) and intergovernmental organisations (e.g. OECD) on climate change and coastal issues, including as a lead author to five reports of the IPCC assessment process.