Federal law created the U.S. Global Change Research Program, an interagency scientific body required to provide regular, policy-neutral updates on current and future trends in global climate change and how these trends are affecting our nation and communities. Participating federal agencies include NASA, the Smithsonian Institution, the Department of Defense, the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy. These updates come in the form of the “National Climate Assessment,” a comprehensive synthesis report intended to inform decision-making at the federal, state, and local levels of government. The findings of the National Climate Assessment provide key scientific guidance for state and local environmental governance.

Judges will hear from Allison Crimmins, Director the Fifth National Climate Assessment (published in November 2023), about the rigorous scientific process that underlies the report as well as its major findings. She will present what scientists know about climate change and its impacts at home, in addition to how scientists arrived at these findings. Honorable Serge Georges of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will moderate the webinar and provide remarks about how climate science has informed increasing levels of climate litigation across the country.