Climate Impacts Group

Mayor Harrell Issues Earth Day Executive Order to Update Seattle’s Climate Action Plan, Accelerate Emissions Reductions from Transportation

This Earth Day, Mayor Bruce Harrell issued an Executive Order directing City departments to respond to Seattle’s current and future climate challenges with a focus on building resilience, growing a green economy, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from transportation. The Executive Order calls for a suite of new actions, meaningfully updating the City’s current Climate Action Plan (CAP) for the first time since its release 12 years ago in 2013. Director Susan Dickerson-Lange is quoted.  

CIG Update: Federal Funding Uncertainty & Potential Program Impacts

Dear supporters of the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group, 

We appreciate the role each of you has played in our collective efforts to help make communities, Washington state, and the Pacific Northwest more resilient to extreme weather events, climate variability, and climate change over the past 30 years.  

We wanted to share with each of you an update regarding federal funding for two of our programs: 1) the Northwest Climate Resilience Collaborative (NCRC), a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) funded Climate Adaptation Partnership program, and 2) the Northwest Climate Adaptation Science Center (NW CASC), a federal-consortium partnership funded by the US Geological Survey (USGS). 

Lakes Region Restoration Project Aims to Link Conservation Lands From Maine to New Hampshire

Conservationists and a logging company will work together to protect Maine’s Magalloway River ecosystem, which offers a rich habitat for brook trout and wildlife. Senior Scientist Meade Krosby is quoted.  

Emergency drought declared for parts of central Washington due to low snowpack

Environmental officials in our state are warning that a big part of our state’s economy is facing a tough summer with not enough water. Karin Bumbaco is quoted on snowpack decline.  

WA faces drought emergency for a third year after middling snowpack

By Conrad Swanson – Seattle Times

Washington is once more under a drought emergency, state officials announced Tuesday, marking the third such declaration in as many years and underscoring the damage wrought by year-after-year droughts. 

Pacific Northwest 2024 Water Year Impacts Assessment Released

The fifth Pacific Northwest Water Year Impacts Assessment, released today, presents a detailed examination of seasonal climate conditions across Washington, Oregon, and Idaho for the 2024 water year (October 1, 2023–September 30, 2024). The Pacific Northwest Water Year Impacts Assessment is produced through a collaboration between the Washington State Climate Office, the Climate Impacts Group at the University of Washington, Oregon Climate Service, Idaho Department of Water Resources, and is funded by the NOAA National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS). The assessment integrates climate data, sector-specific surveys, and community-reported impacts to provide a holistic picture of how water year conditions influence the region.

New research to measure WA’s climate resilience

New paper provides framework for states to measure and improve community resilience in a changing climate

Researchers from the University of Washington’s Climate Impacts Group and the University of South Carolina’s Hazards Vulnerability and Resilience Institute (with support from co-authors at The Pew Charitable Trust, and the Western Fire and Forest Resilience Collaborative),  developed a new paper, State Strategies for Measuring Resilience: A Comparative Study of South Carolina and Washington’s Approaches.

Third straight year of snowpack drought raises water supply, wildfire concerns

While the statewide snowpack sits above normal, a third straight year of snowpack drought hits the Central Cascades, with the Northern stretches of the Washington Mountain range to not be far behind. State Climatologist Guillaume Mauger was quoted and snowpack research from the Climate Impacts Group was mentioned.  

Susan Dickerson-Lange Joins UW Climate Impacts Group as the New Director

The Climate Impacts Group (CIG) has named Susan Dickerson-Lange as its new director. In her role, Dickerson-Lange will provide strategic leadership for CIG, driving financial stewardship and fundraising while supporting the team to deepen partnerships and expand offerings advancing climate resilience in the Pacific Northwest.