Jerry Skees

I am deeply committed to public policy that advances disaster risk financing solutions for diverse stakeholders. With experience as a researcher, educator, risk modeler, public policy advisor, entrepreneur, practitioner, and thought leader in parametric insurance solutions, I bring valuable insights to innovative approaches urgently needed in our increasingly complex and risk-prone world. Beyond my professional work, I am equally passionate about my farm, where we nurture a thriving wildlife habitat by planting trees, native grasses, and pollinators.

Globally recognized expert in parametric insurance, disaster risk finance, and climate risk analytics with more than 40 years of experience across academia, government, private markets, and international development. Founder of Global Parametrics; architect of first-of-their-kind instruments for sovereign and sub-sovereign disaster risk management; pioneer of index-based agricultural and livestock insurance. Extensive experience advising G7, FAO, World Bank, regional development banks, donors, regulators, and reinsurers on blended finance, anticipatory action, and market creation for climate resilience.

• Inter-American Development Bank — Developed an analytic model to standardize presentation and pricing views for parametric products.
• ENSO-based insurance modeling — Designed and mainstreamed contracts using sea surface temperature (ENSO), now in use in South America.
• Mongolia IBLI — Performed actuarial and reinsurance modeling; long-term placement with SCOR Re; national IBLI law enacted in 2014.
• Vietnam ADB (2005–2008) — Team leader developing index-based flood insurance in the Mekong Delta (Dong Thap Province).
• Indonesia Ford Foundation (2011–2014) — Project leader developing index-based earthquake insurance for MFIs; IFC advancing to market.
• Developed reinsurance models used by U.S. crop insurance brokers in the 1990s.

• Authored four educational handbooks on agricultural insurance development (Vietnam, 2009).
• University of Kentucky — Over 35 years of academic teaching and mentoring.
• Led workshops and training for governments and institutions in Mongolia, Peru, and Vietnam.

• Director, Council on Food, Agriculture, and Resource Economics (2000–2007)
• National Advisory Committee on U.S. Crop Insurance (1983–2007)
• Experiment Station Committee on Policy, Social Science (ESCOP T-5) (1997–1998)
• Director, American Agricultural Economics Association (1995–1998)
• Vice President of Finance, AAEA Foundation Board (1996–1997)
• Kentucky Governor’s Task Force on Agriculture (1992)
• Commission on the Future of Agriculture in Kentucky (1988)
• Kentucky Tomorrow Project, Agriculture Committee (1985)

• Pioneer of index-based agricultural insurance (U.S. Group Risk Plan, 1992).
• Designer of the first regulated insurance product that pays before a disaster (forecast insurance).
• Developer of ENSO-based insurance contracts using sea surface temperature indices.
• Architect of multi-hazard, portfolio-level insurance for microfinance institutions.

• Books
• Skees, J.R. and GlobalAgRisk Team (2014). The Potential of Parametrics Insurance Solutions for Managing Natural Disaster Risk to Reduce Poverty and Improve Economic Development in Emerging Economies.
• Skees, J. R., J. Hartell, A. G. Murphy, and B. Collier (2009). Developing Agricultural Insurance in Vietnam: Four Educational Handbooks. Hanoi, Vietnam: AgroInfo. (Handbooks I–IV).
• Handbook I: Challenges in Developing Agricultural Insurance Markets
• Handbook II: The Role of Risk Assessment in Setting Insurance Priorities and Policy
• Handbook III: Applications of Risk Assessment and Product Development in Vietnam
• Handbook IV: A Policy Vision for Developing Agricultural Insurance in Vietnam
• Hartell, J., H. Ibarra, J. R. Skees, and J. Syroka (2006). Risk Management in Agriculture for Natural Hazards. Rome: ISMEA.
• Browne, W. P., J. R. Skees, L. E. Swanson, P. Thompson, and L. Unnevehr (1992). Sacred Cows and Hot Potatoes: Agrarian Myths and Agricultural Policy. Boulder: Westview Press. (AAEA Quality of Communication Award, 2002).
• Book Chapters & Invited Chapters
• Skees, J. R. (2022). Building Climate Resilience for the Urban Poor: DRF Solutions used by Microfinance Institutions. Report to ADB Project TA-9513.
• Skees, J. R. and Alin Radu (2020). Before the Impact. The Actuary, April 2020.
• Skees, J. R., and G. Cavanaugh (2013). Improving Public Policy Decisions in Creating Institutions and Markets to Transfer Natural Disaster Risk in Developing Countries. In Comparative Decision Making. Oxford University Press.
• Skees, J. R., and B. Collier (2012). Rethinking the Role of Index Insurance: Accessing Markets for the Poor. In Weather Index Insurance for Smallholder Farmers in Africa. Sun Media.
• Skees, J. R., and B. Collier (forthcoming). Climate Change: Risk Management Solutions for Developing Economies: A Portfolio Approach. In Insurance for Development. Springer Verlag.
• Skees, J. R., and B. Collier (2012). The Role of Weather Markets and the Carbon Market. In Greening the Financial Sector. Springer Verlag.
• Skees, J. R. (2011). Innovations in Index Insurance for the Poor in Low-Income Countries. In Financial Inclusion, Innovation, and Investments. World Scientific Publishing.
• Skees, J. R., and B. J. Barnett (2010). Area Yield and Weather Based Crop Insurance. In World Crop Reinsurance. Witherby’s.
• Fankhauser, S., et al. (2008). Economic Policy Instruments to Promote Adaptation. In Economic Aspects of Adaptation to Climate Change. OECD.
• Hazell, P. B. R., and J. R. Skees (2006). Insuring Against Bad Weather: Recent Thinking. In India in a Globalising World. Academic Foundation & CESS.
• Gramig, B. M., B. J. Barnett, J. R. Skees, and J. R. Black (2006). Incentive Compatibility in Risk Management of Contagious Livestock Diseases. In The Economics of Livestock Disease Insurance. CABI Publishing.
• Meuwissen, M. P. M., M. A. P. M. van Asseldonk, J. R. Skees, and R. B. M. Huirne (2006). Designing Epidemic Livestock Insurance. In The Economics of Livestock Disease Insurance. CABI Publishing.
• Skees, J. R., J. Hartell, and J. Hao (2006). Weather and Index-based Insurance for Developing Countries. In Agricultural Commodity Markets and Trade. FAO & Edward Elgar Publishing.
• Skees, J. R., P. Varangis, D. Larson, and P. Siegel (2005). Can Financial Markets Be Tapped to Help Poor People Cope with Weather Risks? In Insurance against Poverty. Oxford University Press.
• Skees, J. R. (2000/2004). A Role for Capital Markets in Natural Disasters: A Piece of the Food Security Puzzle. Food Policy (2000); reprinted in The Economics of Natural Hazard (2004).
• Skees, J. R., and J. Hartell (2004). New Instruments for Risk Management: Index Contracts Variability. In The Management of Risk in Agriculture. ISMEA (Italian).
• Varangis, P., J. R. Skees, and B. J. Barnett (2002). Weather Indexes for Developing Countries. In Climate Risk and the Weather Market. Risk Books.
• Swanson, L., R. Harris, J. R. Skees, and L. Williamson (1995). African Americans in Southern Rural Regions: The Importance of Legacy. In Blacks in Rural America. Transaction Publishers.
• Buzby, J. C., J. R. Skees, and R. C. Ready (1995). Using Contingent Valuation to Value Food Safety. In Valuing Food Safety and Nutrition. Westview Press.
• Skees, J. R. (1994). Implementation Issues for Alternative Green Support Programs. In Designing Green Support Programs. Henry A. Wallace Institute for Alternative Agriculture.
• Skees, J. R., and B. J. Barnett (1994). Agricultural Insurance Alternatives: Can They Work in Taiwan? In Changing Trade Environment After GATT: A Case Study of Taiwan.
• Skees, J. R., and D. Smith (1994). Policy Alternatives to Protect Against Crop Failure in U.S. Agriculture. In Food, Agriculture, and Rural Policy into the Twenty-first Century. Westview Press.
• Skees, J. R., and L. E. Swanson (1994). The Politics of Information. In Rural Data, People, and Policy. Westview Press.
• Swanson, L.E., Stephenson, K., and Skees, J.R. (1990). Participation in the Conservation Reserve Program in Kentucky. In Implementing the Conservation Title of the Food Security Act of 1985.
• Skees, J. R., and L. E. Swanson (1988). Farm Structure and Local Society Well-being in the South. In The Rural South in Crisis. Westview Press.
• Skees, J. R., and L. E. Swanson (1988). Farm Structure and Rural Well-being in the South. In Agriculture and Community Change in the US. Westview Press.
• Skees, J. R. (1983). FLOSSIM: A Multiple-Farm Opportunity Set Simulation Model. In Modeling Farm Decisions for Policy Analysis. Westview Press.
• Select Articles in Refereed Journals
• Collier, B., and J. R. Skees (2012). Increasing the Resilience of Financial Intermediaries through Portfolio-Level Insurance against Natural Disasters. Natural Hazards 64: 55–72.
• Hao, J., A. Bathke, J. R. Skees, and H. Dai (2011). Weather Risks, Ratemaking, and Modeling the Tail. International Journal of Ecological Economics and Statistics 20: 51–68.
• Collier, B., A. L. Katchova, and J. R. Skees (2011). Loan Portfolio Performance and El Niño, an Intervention Analysis. Agricultural Finance Review 71: 98–119.
• Collier, B., J. R. Skees, and B. J. Barnett (2009). Weather Index Insurance and Climate Change: Opportunities and Challenges in Lower-Income Countries. The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance 34: 401–424.
• Barnett, B. J., C. B. Barrett, and J. R. Skees (2008). Poverty Traps and Index-Based Risk-Transfer Products. World Development 36: 1766–1785.
• Leiva, A. J., and J. R. Skees (2008). Using Irrigation Insurance to Improve Water Usage in the Rio Mayo System of Northwest Mexico. World Development 36: 2663–2678.
• Skees, J. R. (2008). Innovations in Index Insurance for the Poor in Lower-Income Countries. Agricultural and Resource Economics Review 37: 1–15.
• Skees, J. R. (2008). Challenges to the Use of Index-based Weather Insurance in Lower-Income Countries. Agricultural Finance Review 68: 197–217.
• Skees, J. R., B. J. Barnett, and A. G. Murphy (2008). Creating Insurance Markets for Natural-Disaster Risk in Lower-Income Countries: The Potential Role of Securitization. Agricultural Finance Review 68: 151–167.
• Ibarra, H., and J. R. Skees (2007). Innovation in Risk Transfer for Natural Hazards Impacting Agriculture. Environmental Hazards 7: 62–69.
• Khalil, A. F., H. H. Kwon, U. Lall, M. J. Miranda, and J. R. Skees (2007). ENSO-based Index Insurance for Floods: Statistical Risk Analyses and Application to Peru. Water Resources Research 43: W10416.
• Skees, J. R., J. Hartell, and A. Murphy (2007). Using Index-based Risk Transfer Products to Facilitate Micro Lending in Peru and Vietnam. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 89: 1255–1261.
• Skees, J. R., and B. J. Barnett (2006). Enhancing Micro Finance Using Index-based Risk Transfer Products. Agricultural Finance Review 66: 235–250.
• Barnett, B. J., J. R. Black, Y. Hu, and J. R. Skees (2005). Is Area Yield Insurance Competitive with Farm Yield Insurance? Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics 30: 285–301.
• Veeramani, V. N., L. J. Maynard, and J. R. Skees (2005). Assessment of the Risk Management Potential of a Rainfall-based Insurance Index and Rainfall Options in Andhra Pradesh, India. Indian Journal of Economics and Business 4: 195–208.
• Zeuli, K. A., and J. R. Skees (2005). Rainfall Insurance: A Promising Tool for Drought Management. Water Resources Development 21: 663–675.
• Skees, J. R., P. Hazell, M. J. Miranda (2000). Nuovi Approcci per le Assicurazioni in Agricoltura nei Paesi in via di Sviluppo. Rivista di Politica Agraria 18: 31–35.
• Skees, J. R. (1999). Opportunities for Improved Efficiency in Risk Sharing Using Capital Markets. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 81: 1228–1233.
• Skees, J. R., and B. J. Barnett (1999). Conceptual and Practical Considerations for Sharing Catastrophic/Systemic Risks. Review of Agricultural Economics 21: 424–441.
• Skees, J. R. (1998). Economic Research in Food Safety — Putting the Puzzle Together: Discussion. Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics 30: 109–111.
• Skees, J. R., J. L. Harwood, A. Somwaru, and J. Perry (1998). The Potential for Revenue Insurance Policies in the South. Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics 30: 47–61.
• Skees, J. R., B. J. Barnett, and J. R. Black (1997). Designing and Rating an Area Yield Crop Insurance Contract. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 79: 430–438.
• Barnett, B. J., and J. R. Skees (1994). An Empirical Analysis of the Demand for Multiple-Peril Crop Insurance: Comment. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 76: 948–951.
• Buzby, J. C., P. L. Kenkel, J. R. Skees, J. W. Pease, and F. J. Benson (1994). A Comparison of Subjective and Historical Yield Distributions with Implications for Multiple Peril Crop Insurance. Agricultural Finance Review 54: 15–23.
• Luo, H., J. R. Skees, and M. Marchant (1994). Effectiveness of Early Season Yield Prediction Using Weather Info: Implications for Crop Insurance. Review of Agricultural Economics 16: 441–451.
• Pease, J., E. Wade, J. R. Skees, and C. M. Shrestha (1993). Comparisons between Subjective and Statistical Forecasts of Crop Yields. Review of Agricultural Economics 15: 339–350.

• G7 / FAO — Leads task force advising the FAO Chief Economist on Financing Shock-Driven Food Crises (FSFC).
• World Bank & Government of Mongolia — Chief Consultant and creator of national Index-Based Livestock Insurance (IBLI) program; actuarial and reinsurance modeling with SCOR.
• Rockefeller Foundation — Designed multi-country disaster risk financing for microfinance networks; global portfolio-level insurance.
• Ford Foundation / IFC — Led earthquake parametric insurance product development (Indonesia).
• ADB, IDB, KfW, USAID, UNDP, GIZ — Senior technical advisor on DRF, insurance markets, and climate resilience.
• African Risk Capacity — Early concept and design contributions via Ethiopia drought derivatives and WFP engagement.