Louise Pryor is a British

actuary An actuary is a professional with advanced mathematical skills who deals with the measurement and management of risk and uncertainty. These risks can affect both sides of the balance sheet and require investment management, asset management, ...

with a focus on sustainability, and is chair of the Ecology Building Society.

Early life and education

Pryor has an MA in Mathematics (1981) from

Newnham College, Cambridge Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...

and a PhD in computer science (1993) from

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

. She is an associate fellow of Newnham College. She qualified as a fellow of the

Institute of Actuaries The Institute of Actuaries was one of the two professional bodies which represented actuaries in the United Kingdom. The institute was based in England, while the other body, the Faculty of Actuaries, was based in Scotland. While the Institute a ...

(FIA) in 1985.

Career

Pryor has been described as a "pioneer in modelling the financial and economic impacts of climate change in insurance", and has worked in various roles and consultancies in the field of actuarial work and climate change. She was a lecturer at the Universities of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

(1993–1994) and

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

(1994–1996). She was director of the Board for Actuarial Standards, an operating body of the

Financial Reporting Council The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is an independent regulator in the UK and Ireland based in London Wall in the City of London, responsible for regulating auditors, accountants and actuaries, and setting the UK's Corporate Governance and ...

, which drew up "the first set of technical standards for actuarial work to be developed by an independent standard setting body in the world". She was chair of the London Climate Change Partnership, later renamed as the London Climate Ready Partnership, ''Note that the quoted text is one of four rotating messages on the page'' from 2019 to 2023. Pryor was president of the

Institute and Faculty of Actuaries The Institute and Faculty of Actuaries is the professional body which represents and regulates Actuary, actuaries in the United Kingdom. History The Institute and Faculty of Actuaries came into being on 1 August 2010 as a result of the merger of ...

(IFoA) in 2021–2022. She is co-chair of Actuaries' Carbon Collaboration, which is a working group of the IFoA and is "working towards a coherent understanding of the issues around carbon emissions and offsets by considering them in an actuarial context". Pryor was appointed chair of the Ecology Building Society in May 2022.

Recognition

Pryor is a fellow of the

Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment The Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) is the largest professional body for environmental practitioners in the United Kingdom and worldwide, with nearly 20,000 members. Members receive updates on current environmental law ...

. In 2024 she was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Science by

Anglia Ruskin University Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) is a public research university in the region of East Anglia, United Kingdom. Its origins date back to the Cambridge School of Art (CSA), founded by William John Beamont, a Fellow of Trinity College at the Unive ...

References

External links

* Living people British actuaries 21st-century British women Academics of the University of Birmingham Academics of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge Northwestern University alumni 1960 births {{UK-bio-stub