Dr Abayineh Amare is currently an Associate Professor at Jimma University in Ethiopia. He has been involved in research on climate change vulnerability, climate change resilience, adaptation options, food security, index-based livestock insurance and natural disaster management. His contributions to the field have been recognised through several awards, including the Nordic Africa Institute Visiting Scholar Programme, the Africa Climate Leadership Programme (AfriCLP), the Africa Climate Change Fellowship Programme (ACCFP), and the DAAD In-Country Scholarship Programme. He has also participated in the ProGRANT training. He has undergone extensive specialised training in Bonn, Germany and Uppsala, Sweden. 
Dr Amare has been a mentor for the LEAD! programme since 2022.