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CLIMAS is located at:
University
of Arizona
Institute
for the Study of Planet Earth
715 N Park Avenue, 2nd Floor
Tucson, Arizona 85721-0156
Phone: (520) 792-8712
FAX: (520) 792-8795
climas@email.arizona.edu
Our Mailing Address is:
CLIMAS
University of Arizona
PO Box 210156
Tucson, Arizona 85721-0156
About
CLIMAS:
Research
Questions
Phase III Questions
One major cross-cutting issue grounds CLIMAS work in Phase III:
How will climate variations and climate change combine with rapid population growth across the urban-exurban-rural spectrum to impact the sustainability of both economic growth and environmental resources?
Within this area of concern, CLIMAS efforts are guided by the following research questions:
- How do high population growth rates in the Southwest intersect with drought and climate change to influence human vulnerability to climate?
- What institutional factors impede efforts to adapt to these stressors?
- What major scientific advances might improve adaptation and increase resilience to climate variability and change?
- What strategies are likely to work best for mobilizing research efforts to protect and improve human and natural systems in the region?
- What sorts of knowledge-based products are needed for decision making and science? Which organizations, institutions, and individuals are best suited to develop and disseminate them? What technological innovations best support development of climate services?
- How can we represent multi-dimensional drought vulnerability to better evaluate the potential impacts of drought and the economic risks to communities in the exurban Southwest?
- What are the economic implications of multi-decade climate variability, observed surface water supplies, and trends in snowpack for groundwater use, water infrastructure, agricultural policy, and drought management?
Ongoing Questions
CLIMAS staff and investigators continue to work to address these overarching questions from Phases I and II of the program:
Climate and hydrological variability and forecasts
- What is the nature, and what are the causes of climatic and hydrologic variability in the Southwest on interannual, decadal, and century time scales?
- How do climatic and hydrologic variability vary geographically within the region?
- How predictable is seasonal to inter-annual climate and hydrology, and how might better mechanistic understanding of climate affect predictability?
Vulnerability and impacts
- What are the impacts of climate variability on local populations and what sectors are particularly vulnerable?
- How does climate variability affect Native Americans and their lands, and what sectors/populations are particularly at risk?
- What are the impacts of climate variability on ecological processes and interactions, and on conservation/preservation efforts?
- How do local populations adapt—short term and long term—to climate variability, and how do larger changes in the economy and in resource tenure influence their ability to cope?
Use and value of climate information
- What use is being made of climate information in the Southwest, what is the demand for and value of improved climate information, and how can climate information and uncertainty be best communicated to stakeholders?
- How might a better understanding of climate benefit vulnerable stakeholders in the Southwest?
- How can economic information and incentives analysis contribute to improving dissemination and use of climate and related information?
- What are the best methods for integrating information on climate, hydrology, and vulnerability into assessments and decision support systems that respond to regional needs?