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The U.S. Global Change Research Program, otherwise known by the daunting acronym USGCRP, has released a draft Strategic Plan 2012-2021 for comment, which includes a robust communication and education element.
USGCRP, known as the Climate Change Research Program or CCSP during the George W. Bush era, has evolved from a physical science and modelling program that gave marginal lip service and no funding to social science, education and communication efforts or research into a robust inter-agency effort with international links that now considers social science and effective education and communication to be integral to addressing global change.
Even a few short years ago, education was missing from the program’s mandate, but things changed with the release of the Climate Literacy: Essential Principles of Climate Science, an official USGCRP document. (A parallel and complementary Energy Literacy document is currently in final review with USGCRP and the White House.)
There are four goals presented in the draft plan:
Goal 1. Advance Science: Advance scientific knowledge of the integrated natural and human components of the Earth system.
Goal 2. Inform Decisions: Provide the scientific basis to inform and enable timely decisions on adaptation and mitigation.
Goal 3. Sustained Assessments: Build sustained assessment capacity that improves the Nation’s ability to understand, anticipate, and respond to global change impacts and vulnerabilities.
Goal 4. Communicate and Educate: Advance communications and education to broaden public understanding of global change and empower the workforce of the future.
In making the case for why physical science research and findings are not sufficient to prepare the nation, the authors write:
The goals acknowledge that global change research is not a purely academic endeavor. To be useful, scientists must understand the needs of decision makers at all levels in the public and private sectors and clearly and effectively make research results relevant to those decision makers. For example, farmers depend upon information to adjust and manage crops as planting seasons, growing zones, and pest and weed ranges change. Health care providers must prepare for more severe heat waves and outbreaks of diseases previously unknown in their regions. Insurers must account for shifting weather extremes in assessing future financial risk. Inhabitants of coastal cities need to understand the implications of sea level rise, while many regions of the country address changes in the availability of freshwater and increasing energy demands.
Focusing specifically on Goal 4: Communicate and Education, the authors note:
The final goal acknowledges that meaningful engagement with the public is essential. By integrating communication, education, and engagement into core activities over the next decade, USGCRP and its member agencies will serve as an important gateway to credible and authoritative global change information. USGCRP will build capacity to inform citizens of global change science and data through a user-friendly global change information system. USGCRP education efforts will also support the development of a workforce capable of using global change information and addressing global change issues. The Program will place particular emphasis on education that bridges physical, biological, social sciences, and engineering, and the support of educators’ professional development in USGCRP-related STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) areas.
The plan is a significant departure from prior program plans and reports and, for anyone interested in what can be done at a federal level relative to preparing the nation for changes that are already well underway, the draft plan is well worth reviewing and commenting on: http://strategicplancomments.globalchange.gov/ . But given the fiscal climate in Washington, it will be interesting to see whether Goal #4 will suffer from “last bullet syndrome”: a well intentioned intention but the first to go when the financial going gets tough.
