After nearly four years advancing climate communication research for the Climate Impacts Group, Heidi Roop is starting a new chapter as a faculty member in the Department of Soil, Water, and Climate at the University of Minnesota. In her new role, Heidi will be developing a climate services program to support climate adaptation efforts by natural resource managers, the agricultural sector, and state agencies in Minnesota and the greater Midwest.

As lead scientist for science communication at the Climate Impacts Group, Heidi has leveraged her expertise to improve the reach and impact of our research, quantify the effectiveness of our engagements across the region and develop novel research in climate change adaptation and communication. Heidi’s last day will be Wednesday, July 8.

During her tenure at the Climate Impacts Group, Heidi has cultivated partnerships across the Pacific Northwest and United States while fostering the integration of climate science and communications best-practices in all of our work. A few of Heidi’s major projects include: finding creative, accessible ways to communicate about sea level rise through a visualization tool and an upcoming virtual reality experience; leading work on climate and equity, including collaborating on The Unfair Share report; advancing the use of climate change information in the water sector in collaboration with the Water Utility Climate Alliance; and facilitating the integration of climate science into K-12 classrooms in support of the statewide ClimeTime initiative. Heidi broadened our public presence, giving more than 75 invited talks and dozens of interviews with regional and national news outlets.

We thank Heidi for broadening and deepening the way we communicate our science, and for her passion and dedication to her work. Please join us in sending a hearty congratulations to Heidi as she steps into her role at the University of Minnesota.

Heidi can be reached at her new email address hroop@umn.edu.

Media engagement and communications requests should be sent to Tess Wrobleski: tessw2@uw.edu