December 2019

Welcome to new Program on Climate Change Director Becky Alexander and PCC Board Members. In case you missed it, the PCC has a new director, Becky Alexander (Atmospheric Sciences). Read more in her welcome letter.

Thank you to Cecilia Bitz for her leadership as PCC Director from 2017 to 2019.

Welcome Nives Dolsak (SMEA), Aaron Donohoe (APL), Alex Gagnon (OCN), Soo-Hyung Kim (SEFS), and Greta Shum (ATMOS) to the 2019-2020 PCC Governing Board. The board (full list) now has 22 members representing 13 different departments/groups on campus.

Upcoming Events + Important Dates

Winter Welcome – February 25, 2020 at 5 pm in FSH Lobby and Auditorium.

Enjoy food and drinks while meeting new PCC fellows and board members and hearing short talks by new people in the UW climate community. We will be presenting GCeCS certificates, voting for the 2020 Summer institute theme, and hearing about changes to the fellowship program and more. All are welcome, watch for an announcement and RSVP request in early winter quarter.

PGraSC (PCC Graduate Student Steering Committee) Activities:

• Graduate Student Climate Conference – Oct 30-Nov 1, 2020. Graduate students interested in helping organize, come to the meeting on Thursday Dec. 5, 2019 from 1-2pm in Johnson 377 (the QRC library)
• Keep an eye on the PGraSC event page for upcoming Climate Science on Tap Schooner Series events and the Graduate Student Seminar.
• Other upcoming events to watch for include: University Engagement Happy Hour, Outreach opportunities, and Spring Symposium.

Calendar of Events: https://pcc.uw.edu/events/

A Graduate Certificate in Climate Science (GCeCS) info session was held on 7 Nov 2019. This certificate is available to current graduate students enrolled at the UW and combines the PCC courses, specifically designed to address the cross-linkages in the earth system with a capstone in Climate Science Communication.  Potential mentors, 25 graduate students, and more attended the information session. Read here about the event and some of the many capstone opportunities available.

Summer Institute

The topic of the 2019 SI was “Climate Change Impacts on 21st Century Food and Water Security”, held at Friday Harbor Labs from September 11-13,

The topic of the 2019 SI was “Climate Change Impacts on 21st Century Food and Water Security”, held at Friday Harbor Labs from September 11-13, 2019, and organized by Cecilia Bitz and David Battisti (both Atmospheric Sciences). Read PCC Director Becky Alexander’s blog post here.

This year Alex Stote led an exploration of what it would take to achieve a net-zero carbon emissions Summer Institute, and Friday Harbor Labs enthusiastically provided operations and food data.  In her blog “After Counting Our Summer Institute Carbon Emissions—Now What?” Alex reflects on carbon offsets and the social cost of carbon.

The next Summer Institute will be held September 16-18, 2020 at Friday Harbor Labs.  (Topic TBD, come to winter welcome to vote!)

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