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climate affairs: What do we mean and Why?

When stepping back to look at life, it becomes clear that atmospheric processes affect just about everything that people and societies do. And now, at the onset of the 21st century, we know about many of the things people do that can affect the atmosphere.

Recent reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) state that human activities are influencing global climate by warming up the Earth's atmosphere. Most people do not understand the intricacies of the climate system and how it affects human activities or the ecosystems on which living beings depend.

Climate Affairs as a multidisciplinary activity focuses on "educating the educators" and "training the trainers" about climate and climate-related issues. It includes the following components: climate science, climate impacts on ecosystems and societies, climate policy and law, climate politics, climate economics, and climate ethics and equity. For more information about the notion in general, see the Climate Affairs website.

Recent Activities:

		El Niño Affairs is a new website developed in Spanish by a team of CCB researchers to enhance interest in the effects of El Niño on Latin American countries and communities.
		CCB received a grant from the Asia Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN) to hold a prototype workshop for educators. The website gives information about the scope and design of the workshop.
		CCB staff members attended a conference in western China and have followed up on the recent activities of the International Center for Desert Affairs.
		Mickey Glantz assisted Columbia University's Earth Institute in the development of its "Climate and Society" Masters program, based on the Climate Affairs model. The program began in the fall of 2004.
		Glantz's book about Climate Affairs was published in 2003 (Island Press). An abstract, table of contents, and ordering information is available here.
		In January 2002, the Institute for Latin American Studies at Columbia University in New York and NCAR convened a conference on Climate Affairs in Latin America.
		In February 2002, the United Nations University and NCAR co-sponsored the first training session on Climate Affairs in South and Southeast Asia in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Click here to access the website.

ISSE scientists Linda Mearns, Shannon McNeeley, and Susi Moser are currently researching climate change issues in Alaska and have created a website on Alaskan Climate Affairs.

Educating people, especially undergraduates and young professionals, as well as the general public, about climate and climate-related affairs is a key objective of the Center for Capacity Building.