advanced

Climate and weather create hazards and opportunities for society at multiple scales. These hazards impact society economically, environmentally and politically. Assessment science seeks to improve the processes and methods for generating and communicating scientific knowledge to improve decision-making. The NCAR Climate and Weather Impact Assessment Science Initiative (CWIASI) focuses on critical scientific gaps in the weather and climate arenas that have proved particularly challenging for decision-makers and scientists, such as characterizing uncertainty, extreme weather and climate events and the role of climate in human health. The Societal Impacts Program (SIP) is a collaborative program on the societal impacts and economic benefits of weather information. The program’s overarching goal is to help society benefit from current and emerging weather forecasting capabilities by integrating the knowledge and methods of social science into the weather research and policy-making communities. The CWIASI and SIP programs are cross-divisional and involve scientific and administrative staff from RAL, ISSE (Institute for the Study of Society and Environment) and other NCAR groups.