The profile and depth of knowledge in climate change science is expanding on a daily basis. As this issue area achieves greater prominence in global politics and policy circles and more directly influences R&D investment decisions the demand for more precise, thorough and documented science will intensify. In Illinois, we are at the center of this important, evolving field, and our researchers are already making significant contributions to climate change science. In this issue of ISTC Catalyst, we celebrate a few of these contributions.
Climate change science is focused not just on the discovery of potential ecological and economic consequences, but also on the solutions and steps that can be taken to mitigate the rise in global temperatures. At the local level, our elected officials have been among the most aggressive in North America in the development and execution of strategies to support local risk assessment research, while also encouraging civic engagement in both problem identification and mitigation. The Chicago Climate Action Plan, the founding and funding of the Illinois Climate Change Advisory Group, various state programs and regulatory incentives, and the public sector’s investments in solutions-driven technologies showcase the activity occurring in our state.
Illinois researchers are expertly leveraging the tools in their diverse fields to bring into focus a sharper picture of the current and future effects of climate change. For example, Argonne National Laboratory scientists are utilizing a $60 million ARRA grant to support advancements through the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility; Northern Illinois University researchers are piloting an explorative robot submarine below melting Antarctic ice and University of Illinois Extension crop scientists are modeling the impact of climate change on future plant disease proliferation.
Illinois civic and research infrastructure for climate change science is firmly and broadly established. We invite you to continue reading this issue of ISTC Catalyst for more news on Illinois’ work in climate change science.
Watch and Listen:
Chicago Hosts Premiere of Carbon Nation Documentary: Highlights Unique Solutions to Climate Risk & Energy Security
Learn:
- How Cold Makes Us Hotter: The Arctic’s Changing Role in Global Warming
- Argonne Awarded $60m in ARRA Funding for Climate Change Research
- New Math Tool May Help Predict Climate Change
- Climate Change Complicates Plant Diseases of the Future
- NIU to Use Robotic Submarine to Explore Melting Antarctic Ice
- Are IL Farmers Cooling Chicago Summers?
- Change in Ozone Air Pollution Over Chicago Associated with Global Climate Change
- Northwestern’s NiSP Scientists: Reconceptualizing Climate Change for New Responses
- U of C Faculty Speak at EPA Hearings on CO2 Emissions Regulations
- Conference on Climate Change at Northwestern U Heats Up Debate
- Environmental Change Institute at UIUC
- NIU Analytical Center for Climate and Environmental Change
- The Illinois Climate Change Advisory Group
- Chicago Climate Action Plan
More News:
2010 Sustainable University Symposium
Friday, August 27, 2010
I-Hotel and Conference Center, 1900 South First Street, Champaign, IL
Join this year’s Green Governments Coordinating Council Symposium, hosted by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, in learning how to make your university or college campus more sustainable. This symposium is an opportunity for college and university administrators, engineers, architects, professors, and student leaders to exchange ideas in the effort to enhance sustainability at Illinois institutions of higher learning and identify new programs to apply at your university. The annual event also seeks to empower young adults to pursue careers in the environmental sciences and make an investment in the sustainability of our state and our planet.
Speakers, workshops, and panel discussions will cover topics such as sustainable renovation and construction, energy efficiency and conservation, environmental education and service learning, water conservation, and waste reduction.
GridWise Global Forum
September 21-23, 2010
Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, Washington, D.C.
The GridWise® Alliance and the U.S. Department of Energy welcome participants to the first-annual GridWise Global Forum, September 21-23 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, DC.
The GridWise Global Forum is an unprecedented gathering of policy leaders, corporate executives, technology innovators, legislators, regulators, investors, consumers, and environmental advocates from North America and around the globe who have come together to share their experiences with today’s smart grid deployments and their visions for a smarter grid over the next two decades. Speakers and participants from the highest levels of government and the private sector to will discuss the impact of the smart grid on world use energy and supply, the impact of its adoption on industrial, commercial and residential consumer, and opportunities for investors. The outcome of this collaborative discussion will include a global view of smart grid today, including best practices from around the world; a clearer understanding of the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead; and a commitment from countries around the world to work together to achieve the full potential of smart grid.
Environmental Change Institute Summit 2010
Climate Change: Agricultural Solutions, Adaptation & Mitigation
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
I-Hotel and Conference Center, 1900 South First Street, Champaign, IL
Environmental Change Institute is hosting Upper Midwest agricultural experts to discuss how agricultural practice can mitigate climate change, and how we can adapt agriculture to climate change.
Keynote speaker, climatologist and meteorologist Mark Seeley, PhD, presents what climate changes science indicates are anticipated in the next 50 years, and outlines implications to land use, landscape and infrastructure. Dr. Seeley is Professor in the Department of Water, Soil and Climate at University of Minnesota, author of Minnesota Weather Almanac and a regular contributor to Minnesota Public Radio’s Morning Edition.
The conference will spotlight mitigation strategies and adapted practices and will offer an opporutnity to meet industry peers.