Results of the UCAR 2008 Forum on Climate Mitigation and Adaptation

Mayors, governors, and local decision makers are developing climate change action plans. They are not waiting for the federal carbon emission reduction debates to conclude (e.g., cap and trade or carbon tax legislation). Many of them are struggling with what should be in these plans, what they should be assuming about future weather and climate trends, and what the impact might be on their community and its infrastructure. In October 2008, the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research held a forum at its 2008 Members' Meeting that focused on the UCAR community's role in climate change adaptation and mitigation. Many of UCAR's 71 university members are involved in projects with local and regional decision makers struggling with planning for the future in the face of climate change. The forum focused on the following questions: 1. How are these projects working and what lessons have we learned? 2. What can our community can do to assist these partnerships (e.g., models and other tools, better information, training opportunities, outreach, sharing ideas, etc.)? 3. Can we help our nation deal more effectively with climate mitigation and adaptation by being more strategic with these partnerships (e.g., more coordination, creating packages of tools and information, creating common approaches to climate action plans, developing better communication tools, community strategic planning effort, etc.)? This presentation will provide a summary of the forum outcomes.