MORE EQUITABLE CLIMATE ADAPTATION THROUGH APPLIED EARTH SCIENCE COLLABORATION

Climate risks are rising and the impacts on health, prosperity, and the environment are likely to slow progress toward Sustainable Development Goals. Projections show that global demand for food is likely to increase by 50 percent, while yields may decline by up to 30 percent by 2050 without adaptation, meaning adaptation is a matter of survival. Regardless of our ability to narrow the gap between current emissions trajectories and 1.5 and 2 degree emissions paths, we are locked into significant adaptation in coming decades. Looking back, what will we wish we had done to adapt to climate change?

We will wish we had devoted more attention to modeling and assessing options for adaptation and risk management over multiple timescales to inform action plans, in addition to assessing future impacts and risks. Climate adaptation endeavors depend on context-specific, multi-disciplinary, action-oriented research and evidence. We will wish we had engaged more diverse voices and decision-makers in Earth science and related technologies. Climate change is an equity issue, and the most vulnerable groups that are least responsible should be at the table, shaping the research agenda, guiding and benefiting from research investments, and advancing science-based policy and planning with the support of international partners. We will wish we had evolved our science institutions so they rewarded applied research for the societal benefits it delivered, equally or more than traditional scientific deliverables.

This presentation will share examples of collaborative, applied Earth science efforts that connect predictive modeling, mapping, and analysis to the needs of decision-makers managing climate-related risks in developing countries. It will identify high value climate adaptation insights that Earth science can deliver based on the experiences of USAID, NASA, and international partners over the last 15 years.