NOAA, Climate Mayors ink agreement to bring more science, data tools to communities

Dive Brief:

• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Thursday that it is teaming up with the group Climate Mayors to accelerate the use of climate information and expertise at the local level.
• Climate Mayors, a network of almost 350 mayors dedicated to local climate action, signed a five-year memorandum of understanding with the federal agency outlining how they will work together on increasing local access to climate science and tools.
• The agreement includes annual briefings from NOAA to Climate Mayors’ leadership, the provision of local climate decision support services to Climate Mayors’ members and a commitment from Climate Mayors to contribute to NOAA case studies on climate resilience.

Dive Insight:

Even as city- and state-level climate adaptation plans proliferate, U.S. communities are not adapting quickly enough to address the dangers of future climate change impacts, warns the Fifth National Climate Assessment, a congressionally mandated report released last year.

Some local governments are turning to data and science to make decisions about preparing for increasing extreme weather events, some through partnerships with tech companies like Google. “Impactful solutions only evolve from a deep understanding of climate science and what is truly at stake for cities in the face of climate change,” Climate Mayors Executive Director Kate Wright said in a statement.

According to a news release, NOAA will provide Climate Mayors with regional and local climate decision support services, including relevant information to help communities make decisions in the face of extreme weather or climate change-related events. The agency will also send the group updates on climate tools and information products related to seasonal and high-impact events as well as annually brief the group’s leadership on climate products, data, tools, services and other opportunities. 

For its part, Climate Mayors will work with NOAA to inform its climate service development and delivery. The group of local leaders will also highlight adaptation success, contribute to case studies and lessons learned and encourage members to participate in NOAA’s monitoring and evaluation efforts.