NCAnet: Building a Network of Networks to Support the National Climate Assessment

The National Climate Assessment (NCA), a major product of the US Global Change Research Program, is an important resource for understanding and communicating climate change science and impacts in the United States. The process for the 2013 NCA report and subsequent products is envisioned as a sustained effort focusing considerable attention on establishing a strong stakeholder engagement process throughout the development, production, and release of NCA products. In order to engage a diverse group of producers and users of assessment information, the NCA is building long-term partnerships with organizations in public, private, and non-profit sectors through a new network, NCAnet. With more than 50 organizations representing local, state, and national-level interests in a variety of disciplines, NCAnet builds long-term capacity to conduct and use assessments and to support decisions about responding to climate change. Partners contribute to the NCA through, e.g., submission of technical inputs, hosting discussions on methods for assessment and communication, and convening conversations about climate information needs. NCAnet is also organizing around "affinity groups" related to partners' interests, discussing methods for building capacity within their networks to communicate about climate change, and preparing to engage members and stakeholders in reviewing the 2013 NCA report draft.