AMS development of community ideas for coping effectively with climate change.

Extreme weather events, changing patterns of precipitation, stronger and more frequent tornados and hurricanes/typhoons, larger than normal oscillations of the polar vortex, changes in the sun cycle, global warming due to increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, early arrival of spring, reduced snowpack in the mountains, melting glaciers and icesheets, all are manifestations that are impacting the environment and human habitation causing serious societal and ecological problems. As such, global climate change is one of the most pressing and immediate problems facing the world today.

To assist in the identification and devising of roadmaps of potential workable solutions to help ameliorate impacts of climate change-driven issues that are negatively impacting society and the world and that can be addressed within a 2 to 3-year timeframe, the American Meteorological Society (AMS), a community of 13,000 atmospheric and geospace scientists is positioned to run an information gathering activity to solicit ideas and input from its extensive network of experts, nationally and internationally. Broader Impacts of the activities will be the generation of potential climate change solutions to mitigate the impact of a changing climate on environmental, societal, and economic arenas.

They also include the engagement of early career scientists and members of underrepresented groups whose lives and careers are most likely to be impacted over time. Additional activities include outreach to K-12 and the public to provide information to help them better understand the challenges of climate change and possible solutions that can be implemented.

To help solicit ideas and possible mitigation of some of the serious impacts of climate change, the American Meteorological Society, the largest professional society of weather and climate scientist in the US, will run a series of broad, inclusive, and results-driven activities focused on engaging the brightest minds in weather and climate science to identify climate-related issues, with accompanying roadmaps, that can be addressed and that will result in major advances within a timeframe of 2 to 3-years. This will involve a series of virtual meetings, webinars, crowdsourcing events, one-on-one conversations, panels of experts, etc. to generate ideas and obtain convergence on potentially workable solutions to specific aspects of climate change with the biggest impacts on society and the economy.

Part of the effort will focus on the socialization and promotion of translational research and its value to both climate change solutions as well as the academic research enterprise.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.