Momentum in the face of uncertainty

A message from President & CEO Dr. R. Max Holmes

When it comes to climate science and policy, recent news has been grim—withdrawal from the Paris Agreement and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, dismantling of the National Climate Assessment, discontinuation of NOAA’s Billion Dollar Disaster tracking, the threat of major cuts to science staffing and funding across multiple federal agencies, and more. 

These moves cede U.S. leadership on the world stage and put American communities at increased risk, and we will continue to speak out on these issues.  

However, it is also important to remember that there is good and important work that continues. Over the course of the past several weeks, Woodwell Climate’s scientists and experts have:

• Produced a policy brief and participated in a Congressional briefing about the need for insurance regulation to evolve to meet the challenges of climate change;
• Delivered a country-wide climate risk assessment for Ethiopia to scholars and government officials in Addis Ababa;
• Put Arctic change front and center with a building-sized mural of maps in Telluride, CO that is expected to be seen by more than a million people over the coming year; 
• Submitted public comment to the Department of Homeland Security emphasizing the impact and value of FEMA investment and programs in helping communities prepare for and respond to climate-fueled natural disasters;
• Highlighted the importance of Indigenous leadership in land management at a “power-packed symposium” at Mountainfilm festival;
• Traveled to Toolik Field Station to install a greenhouse gas monitoring station and begin work on EvOME, an NSF-funded institute aimed at understanding how species and ecosystems are evolving in response to rapid Arctic warming.
• Installed new laboratory instrumentation secured through a Congressional appropriation that will improve our ability to measure key nutrients in water samples and soil extracts;
• Participated in a panel discussion “Brazil’s strategic role in building a resilient and sustainable global food system” at Financial Times’ Brazil Summit: Balancing Growth, Sustainability and Global Influence.
• Hosted a workshop for local researchers involved in DIY development of environmental sensors.
• Welcomed the first of more than a dozen interns who will join our science teams in Falmouth and in the field this summer. 

This list is long, but it is far from exhaustive. The point is, while we are seeing damaging impacts across the science ecosystem—and starting to feel some close to home—we are not hamstrung, stalled, or paralyzed. We are forging ahead relentlessly, with more determination than ever.

We are gearing up for a busy field season and meetings in D.C. regarding boreal wildfire, as well as significant participation at the UN’s June Climate Meetings in Bonn and TED Countdown in Nairobi. 

In less than two weeks, we will welcome former Presidential Science Advisor Dr. John Holdren to campus for an important conversation about enduring impact in the face of political turbulence—please join us in person or on the livestream. And we will have another very special guest to celebrate our 40th anniversary at our July Climate Conversations event (details coming soon).

I cannot and will not pretend that everything is smooth sailing right now. Far from it. We have been in this fight for four decades—since the beginning—and in many ways the challenges have never been greater. But we remain committed and determined to do everything we can to overcome the obstacles, to hold true to our values, and to chart the course to a positive future for all.

As part of Team Woodwell, thank you for all you do to make this difficult but essential work possible. Now, more than ever.

Onward,