About this blog
Mark McCaffrey helped develop Climate Literacy: The Essential Principles of Climate Science which has been reviewed and endorsed by the US Global Change Science Program. Designed to aid teachers, policy makers, and the general public in understanding the intricacies of the climate system, the Climate Literacy principles present information about Earth's climate, the impacts of climate change, and approaches to preparedness and mitigation. More details ...
Mark is a co-founder of the Climate Literacy Network and attended the Inspiring Climate Education (ICE09) conference in Copenhagen to share insights about climate literacy efforts with colleagues from around the world. He is involved with the NASA funded Inspiring Climate Education Excellence (ICEE) project and the Climate LIteracy Energy Awareness Network (CLEAN), which is an NSF National Science Digital Library Pathway.
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Author Archives: mccaffrey
Communicate and Educate- A Window of Opportunity
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 … Continue reading
Action Now
Photo courtesy of Asian Scientist. The International Council for Science (ICSU), which was established in 1931 and has played a behind-the-scenes role in fostering scientific integrity and collaboration at a global level ever since, held their tri-annual General Assembly in … Continue reading
Unstoppable
Here is a guest posting from CIRES Education & Outreach Director Susan Buhr about a DVD being sent to teachers entitled “Unstoppable Solar Cycles“. Her posting originally appeared on the ICEE Community Forum. —————————— I was reading some evaluation data … Continue reading
Issues That Need Solving
Interactive of temperature a from time series of 1884-2010: http://climate.nasa.gov/keyIndicators/ In his final Economic Scene column in the New York Times last week entitled “A Knowing Nation Has Issues That Need Solving,” Pulitzer Prize winning columnist David Leonhardt notes the messiness … Continue reading
New Norms
Meanwhile, we’ve done little or nothing to prepare for changes that are already well underway. The U.S. Navy Task Force Climate Change is one example of an effort to tackle issues like the 1-1.5 meter sea level rise over the next century an ice free summers in the Arctic. Another is the Climate Adaptation Knowledge Exchange, or CAKE, which is collecting case studies of efforts to prepare for climate change around the world. Continue reading
Dueling Denial (Part Deux)
Wildavsky & Dake, 1990 The high degree of rationality individuals display in forming risk perceptions that express their cultural values can itself inhibit collective welfare rationality by blocking citizens from converging on the best available scientific evidence on how to … Continue reading
Dueling Denial (Part 1)
Our affluence, however relative it may be for us individually, makes for a bubble in which we can debate scientific principles and policy prescriptions that reflect our particular cultural frames and values… while meanwhile, emissions of heat trapping gases continue to spew into the atmosphere, ice melts, sea level rises, the ocean acidifies, population continues its exponential rise, and the planet’s biosphere is radically altered by human activities. Continue reading
Rigged?
Without solid climate science and energy awareness, how can we as a society step outside the staged arena with its theater and snipping in order to make truly informed choices, minimize very real risks, and empower ourselves as individuals and communities in order to build genuine resiliency into our lives? Continue reading
Good News/Bad News
Years ago a mentor of mine suggested that news is neutral, and whether it is considered “good” or “bad” is in the eyes of the beholder at that particular moment of time. I was reminded of this when reading the … Continue reading
Being Unreasonable
These are just a few examples of the projects the fellows are involved with to demonstrate the diversity and enthusiasm of these entrepreneurs who are tackling unreasonable problems with creativity, passion and humor. Continue reading
