[Vision2020] NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco Leads U.S. Delegation to World Climate Conference-3

[Ted Moffett]

NOAA Administrator to Lead U.S. Delegation to World Climate Conference-3
Looking Ahead to ‘A Clear Chance to Shape Our Future’

August 27, 2009

Jane Lubchenco <http://www.noaa.gov/lubchenco.html>, Ph.D., under secretary
of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator, will lead a
U.S. delegation to Geneva, Switzerland, August 31- September 4 for the World
Climate Conference-3 <http://www.wmo.int/wcc3/> in efforts to establish a
Global Framework for Climate Services. This framework is intended to help
meet accelerating demands for useful information on the impacts of climate
change.

"Climate change is real. It is happening now, in our backyards and around
the globe,” said Lubchenco. “Decision-makers across all sectors require
reliable, relevant information about the current and projected impacts of
climate change, whether they are farmers, manufacturers, or city officials
planning snow removal budgets or options for water resources, transportation
or new housing developments. In a rapidly changing world these decisions
cannot be made based on weather of the past; decision-makers need to know
what to expect in the next twenty to fifty years to plan effectively.”

Next week’s conference will bring together those who collect and develop
climate information with those who need it, setting in motion an
unprecedented opportunity to design a system that will inform
decision-making in a way that is similar to how weather services work today,
but on a longer time-scale. Climate services would include the broad range
of what users require to address their needs, including data collection,
technical assessment, analysis and prediction, and the ability to interpret
and use the information.

The U.S. delegation will include representatives from the White House Office
of Science and Technology Policy, the White House Council on Environmental
Quality, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Department of State, the
U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, U.S. National Science Foundation, USAID, the Environmental
Protection Agency, NOAA and NASA.  U.S. officials will be actively engaged
at the conference, learning from the international community and sharing
American knowledge and innovations.

The first two World Climate Conferences, in 1979 and 1990, greatly enhanced
capabilities to observe and assess climate change, ultimately leading to the
establishment of the World Climate Research Program and the Global Climate
Observing System, as well as the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change and the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change.

“Rarely are we presented with such a clear chance to shape our future, to
start taking actions essential to making our planet healthier, safer and
more environmentally and economically viable. We look forward to working
with the international community to make this a very successful conference,”
said Lubchenco.
NOAA understands and predicts changes in the Earth’s environment, from the
depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and conserves and manages our
coastal and marine resources.
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Vision2020 Post: Ted Moffett
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