The PCC Graduate Student Steering Committee (P-GraSC) hosted a winter Schooner Series event in collaboration with Cascadia Climate Action focused on climate solutions at Bickersons Brewhouse in Ballard on March 8, 2023. The Schooner Series started as an offshoot of the popular Climate Science on Tap from Cascadia Climate Action, a member of the regional CascadiaNow! nonprofit family. This month’s Schooner featured three presentations and a subsequent panel discussion under the theme “Solutions to Climate Change: UW Grad Students in Hot Pursuit”.
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Improving park access and health co-benefits in Tacoma using a “Green Schoolyards” approach
By Nolan Kitts Who doesn’t love a good park? Especially in urban areas, public green spaces give us opportunities to move around outside, find some quiet, and enjoy a more natural setting. Researchers have established many benefits of urban park access, from increasing physical activity to improving mental health. With a changing climate, urban parks have become even more critical. Park trees can decrease the impact of “urban heat islands” through evapotranspiration and providing shade.
Read moreTackling climate change denial, one stage at a time
By Raven Capone Benko “Climate change is happening, there’s no disagreement there. I just don’t think it’s going to be as bad as all the scientists say. I mean, look at the last fifty years since scientists started making catastrophic claims about climate change… nothing has happened.” In my sister’s living room over cups of tea and the remnants of our white elephant gift exchange, her partner – an engineer for an oil refinery – and I were in a deep discussion about green energy, environmental ethics, and of course, the legitimacy of climate change.
Read morePCC Stewardship of Climate Research Gift at UW
From the Interim Director, LuAnne Thompson The Program on Climate Change is the steward of three gifts that are making a difference for University of Washington graduate students and Assistant Professors studying climate and climate change from a variety of perspectives. Six graduate students will receive support from these awards; these students are enrolled in programs across campus including the School of Oceanography, the Department of Atmospheric Sciences, the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, and the Biology Department.
Read moreWelcome from LuAnne Thompson, PCC Interim Director
Greetings, PCC community! I have taken the reigns as Interim Program on Climate Change Director while Becky Alexander takes a well deserved sabbatical. She has been an extraordinary leader for the last three years, and will return in September of 2023. Becky and Miriam have set us up for an exciting year. We enjoyed the Walker Ames visit of Baba Brinkman in November when he performed several brand new raps motivated by the work of scientists at UW on solutions to the climate crisis.
Read moreBaba Brinkman impresses as PCC-nominated Walker Ames visitor
Step aside blogs, tweets, and posters (oh my!), may we introduce performer, activist, and rap artist, Baba Brinkman. The PCC nominated Baba Brinkman as one of this year’s UW Graduate School Office of Public Walker-Ames Lecturers. This charismatic climate rapper joined us at UW, flying directly to Seattle from the COP27 meeting in Egypt. A review of his Nov 17 “lecture” to a crowd in Kane Hall can be found here.
Read moreThe 16th Graduate Climate Conference-a return to Pack Forest
The Graduate Climate Conference (GCC), now in its sixteenth year, represents a rich tradition tied to the history of the PCC. First held in 2006, the GCC has grown and evolved while remaining true to its core mission of highlighting student-led work at a conference run by graduate students for graduate students. Hosting responsibilities have alternated each year between students in the PCC at UW and students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)’s Program on Atmospheres, Oceans, and Climate.
Read moreConsidering Pathways to Net-Zero Emissions at the 2022 PCC Summer Institute
The release of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report in 2021 re-emphasized the need to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in order to stabilize the climate and stop global warming, putting pathways towards net-zero on center stage. Thus, it was not surprising that members of the climate science community attending the annual PCC Winter Welcome voted for “Pathways to Net-Zero Emissions” as the topic for the PCC’s first in-person Summer Institute (SI) since 2019.
Read moreBaba Brinkman's "Rap Guide to Climate Chaos" Climate Communication from COP27 to the PCC
When someone says the words “climate change,” you might think of the devastating global effects, the politics behind action or inaction, or even personal impacts on your life from a changing environment. It is extremely unlikely that your first thought was about rap. Yet, the hyper-specific niche of climate rapping is what Baba Brinkman, performer and activist, has chosen to inhabit, and for a very specific reason: the need to connect to the masses.
Read morePCC Undergraduate Cohort: How to Get Involved with Climate Science Research
Getting involved in research is perhaps one of the most exciting aspects of becoming an undergraduate at UW. Yet, finding these opportunities can be extremely daunting, especially if you don’t have contacts, past experience, or knowledge of where to look. At the PCC Undergraduate Cohort (UCo), we are highly aware of these issues, and we know how helpful it can be to have access to resources, advice, and a place to ask questions about research.
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