America Adapts - The Climate Change Podcast

In episode 177 of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Justin Sanchez of Battelle; Jamie Beck Alexander of Project Drawdown; Franco Amalfi of Google Cloud; and Erin Sikorsky of the Center for Climate and Security. All our keynote speakers at the upcoming Innovations in Climate Resilience that Battelle is hosting in Columbus, Ohio. You’ll learn about the climate change work each of their companies and organizations are working on and you’ll hear get previews of their talks at the Innovations conference. Some of the leading climate voices sharing their stories! Topics covered: Details on the upcoming Innovations in Climate Resilience Conference. How Project Drawdown works with groups to lower their carbon footprint and find solutions to large scale climate problems. Google Cloud works with government entities on resilience planning using big data and climate modeling. How national security is increasingly focused on climate adaptation. Experts in this Episode: Justin Sanchez - Technical Fellow at Battelle Eri

In episode 176 of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Dr. Kelly Hereid, the Director Of Catastrophe Research and Development at Liberty Mutual Insurance. Kelly takes us through the tool of catastrophe modeling and explains why it could be useful for adaptation planners. We also learn how the insurance industry tries to make the uncertain nature of hurricanes and climate change more predictable: “Climate translators” play a critical role in this process.  They also discuss the wild, wild west nature of the climate data and modeling industry and how to avoid using bad information in your adaptation planning. Doug and Kelly also discuss the unique and controversial role Citizens Property Insurance in Florida plays in coastal planning. Topics covered: What is a ‘climate translator’? How the insurance industry makes climate uncertainty more predictable. What is catastrophe modeling and why it should be used in adaptation planning. Making sense of climate predictions set decades in the future. Translating climate

In episode 175 of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts early career adaptation professionals. We learn their educational background; what inspired them to get into the adaptation space; what climate impacts and geographic regions they are most interested in making a difference; do they think there are enough adaptation professional advancement opportunities; what adaptation work they want to be doing in 20 years; and what unique skills do they bring to the resilience space. Fantastic conversation with the next generation of adaptation professionals! Topics covered: Educational background of early career adaptation professionals. What inspired these professionals to go into adaptation. What climate impacts and regions are people interested in? What are adaptation education gaps? Are there professional development opportunities in adaptation? What adaptation resources are recommended. What do they want to be doing in 20 years. What are some unique adaptation skills they bring to the sector. Guests in this Epis

In a re-release, episode 111 of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Dr. Linda Shi, an Assistant Professor in the Department of City and Regional Planning at Cornell University.  Doug and Linda talk about coastal development and adaptation economics; what happened to the 100 Resilient Cities Initiatives; urban inequality; racially just adaptation; transformative adaptation and much more!   Topics covered: Issues for equity, adaptation and climate change Urban planning and climate justice. Spatial inequality Coastal development and adaptation economics “Racially just Adaptation” Real estate vulnerability Climate Adaptation Plans Can Worsen Unequal Urban Vulnerability Transformative adaptation What happened to the 100 Resilient Cities Initiative What is an adaptation professional? The lack of university level adaptation programs Subscribe to the America Adapts newsletter here. Battelle Information Innovations in Climate Resilience Conference https://www.battelle.org/conferences/conference-on-innovations-in-cl

In episode 173, Dr. Carolyn Kousky of the Environmental Defense Funds joins the podcast to discuss her new book, Understanding Disaster Insurance, New Tools for a More Resilient Future. Carolyn and Doug discuss why insurance companies still are not taking climate change seriously enough. Carolyn shares some innovative insurance tools to help people gain access to flood insurance in at risk areas. We also learn some of the fundamentals of climate risk and how insurance can play an increasing role in adaptation planning.   Topics covered: Why should people care about risk insurance? Why aren’t insurance companies taking climate change more seriously? Examples of innovative insurance tools to help with adaptation planning. What is risk transfer and why is it so important for climate adaptation? Disasters, their economic consequences, and the role of insurance. Innovation to Unlock the potential of disaster insurance Why aren’t insurance companies more interested in managed retreat? Subscribe to the America Ad

In episode 172, Judge Alice Hill from the Council on Foreign Relations returns to the podcast! Alice discusses the recent floods in Pakistan and how the aftermath could be a national security threat. We also discuss Puerto Rico and Hurricane Irma and the challenges of getting on the ground resilience funding on the island. Alice and I discuss how bureaucracies can have difficulty supporting adaptation planning and funding and why a National Adaptation Plan would help with adaptation coordination. Alice also shares the lack of basic climate understanding among corporate leaders and how that inhibits making resilience a priority in the private sector. We also dig into the recommendations of the recently released GAO report, Climate Change: Enhancing Federal Resilience. Always great to catch up with Alice Hill! Topics covered: The flooding in Pakistan and the National Security Implications of the aftermath. Hurricane Fiona and Puerto Rico. The challenges for FEMA to distribute funding. Bureaucratic hurdles to

In episode 171, Dr. Jesse Keenan of Tulane University returns to discuss the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act and how adaptation and resilience are built into the legislation. We discuss the misleading adaptation coverage in the media and why the Act represents a significant investment in climate resilience. Jesse takes a deep dive and explains how adaptation is built into tax policies, clean energy credits, community investment and much more in the legislation. Joining the podcast in a bonus interview is Samantha Medlock, the Senior Counsel for the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis where she explains what’s next for adaptation legislation in the U.S. Congress. Topics covered: Misleading coverage of adaptation in the Inflation Reduction Act. How the Act integrates with other adaptation legislation, e.g., the Infrastructure Bill of 2021. Gaps in Adaptation funding and legislation Is a National Adaptation Plan even more critical now? Bonus interview: House Select Committee on the Climate Cr

In episode 170, Lisa Craig of The Craig Group joins the podcast to discuss how her company supports local governments, community groups, cultural organizations, and state, national and tribal partners in adapting to climate change.  We also discuss the challenges of adapting cultural resources in a changing climate. Doug and Lisa discuss the implications of suing a local government to adapt to climate change.  Lisa shares stories of working with communities and describes in detail how they get very different stakeholders to collaborate on adaptation planning. In a segment, ‘adapt or abandon’, Lisa gives her professional opinion on what historic resources should be preserved and which ones we might have to abandon. It’s a provocative conversation but ultimately one many of us will have to have. Lisa also shares her unique professional journey into the adaptation sector. We also get a sneak peak of some work America Adapts will be doing with Lisa’s team in Trinidad and Tobago in 2023.   Topics covered: Hazard

In episode 169, we’re doing a mid year adaptation review extravaganza! Doug is joined by Shaun Martin of World Wildlife Fund and Monika Serrano, of Turner Construction. The three discuss the top climate stories of the past year; their favorite America Adapts episodes; future recommendations for the podcast; how to stay connected to the adaptation universe; their favorite resilience and adaptation resources; where will adaptation be in ten years and much more! It’s a fun and informative discussion with two leading adaptation pros!  Also, Dr. Jeff Colgan of Brown University joins the pod for a quick discussion on a new resource at Brown’s Climate Solutions Lab that allows you to search climate course syllabi, or upload your own for others to access. Topics covered: Top climate stories of 2022 Favorite America Adapts podcast episodes of the past year (and why) Recommended adaptation resources. Topics for future America Adapts’ episodes. Should universities offer adaptation degrees? How to use social media more

In episode 168 of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts David Kuhn and Ben Jordan. David is the lead for corporate resilience at World Wildlife Fund and Ben is the Senior Director of Packaging and Climate at The Coca-Cola Company.  We discuss why engaging the corporate sector is so important to WWF and why the private sector will be so important for the emerging adaptation sector.  We also discuss sustainability and its longer history with corporate America and how adaptation can complement the work that’s already been done in sustainability.  You’ll also learn about an innovative project the two are working on together that will build climate resilience and protect water quality in Guatemala. This episode will ground you in the current state of affairs with climate adaptation and the business sector.  We cover a lot of ground in this podcast! Experts in this episode: David Kuhn - Lead for Corporate Resilience at World Wildlife Fund Ben Jordan - Senior Director of Packaging and Climate at The Coca-Cola Company

In episode 167, Doug Parsons hosts Francisco Sanchez Jr., Associate Administrator for the Small Business Administration’s Office of Disaster Assistance. Francisco shares what is the office of disaster assistance. We also discuss how climate change is requiring them to evolve their mission. SBA is actually a major funder of disaster preparedness, an increasingly important part of any adaptation response for communities. We also learn about Francisco’s previous experiences doing similar disaster work in Houston, Texas. He has some riveting stories as the city was preparing for Hurricane Harvey to make landfall. It’s a great episode and you get to hear how a federal agency is stepping up on the issue of climate change. Topics covered: What is the role of SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance How is the Office evolving factoring in climate change. What are some federal policies that make it hard to provide disaster assistance. Learn why disaster preparedness is a key pillar of climate adaptation. Learn how remar

In episode 166 of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts adaptation experts from Colorado. We learn how extreme storm events have been a major driver in adaptation planning in the state. Discover the most pressing climate impacts facing Colorado. We hear from the state climatologist about Colorado’s unique climate and what challenges it brings to adaptation planners. We also hear about on the ground examples of resilience planning from city and local governments.  Colorado is learning quickly how to upscale their post-disaster recovery efforts.  The epic 2013 floods were a catalyst for many of the resilience actions we see today in Colorado. Learn how that happened and how responding to these events has spurred adaptation innovation at the state level. Colorado has created a useful template on how other states can begin to comprehensively adapt to climate change. Colorado Experts in this episode: Anne Miller - Colorado Resiliency Office Director in the Colorado Office of Local Affairs Russ Schumacher - Colorado

In episode 165 of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Dr. Katharine Mach. Katharine is a Professor at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and is a lead author for the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report. Katharine explains the process of drafting the report; how the media succeeds and fails at communicating the urgency of the report; Doug and Katharine also discuss a need to rethink the role and purpose of the IPCC report to help elevate the urgency of the message it’s sending. Katharine also explains a paper on “the concept of risk” she co-authored for the IPCC. In addition, we hear how the University of Miami is bringing adaptation and resilience into its curriculum. Topics covered: IPCC is a grand partnership between the governments of the world. How did the media do in reporting on the IPCC report? The IPCC has zero regulatory authority over sovereign nations. What does it mean to be a lead author for the IPCC. Many developing countries don’t have the climate data and e

In the latest episode of America Adapts, we are talking with citizen activists impacted by repeated flooding and what actions they are taking in response.  The podcast is joined by representatives from the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Anthropocene Alliance. We also talk to four citizen activists who have experienced flooding first hand and the steps they are taking to make their communities more resilient to future extreme events.  We share stories of citizen adapters and the advice they give others that are dealing with extreme events in their communities. We also hear some national level policy recommendations on how to help communities adapt to flooding conditions that will worsen as the climate warms. Get on the ground with flood survivors! Topics covered: Learn what it’s like to live with repeated flooding. How the Anthropocene Alliance helps citizens take action in response to flooding (and how you can benefit too). What role FEMA plays in flood response. What federal policy reforms are n

In the latest episode of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Erin Sikorsky, the director of The Center for Climate and Security. Erin and Doug discuss: how to elevate the urgency of climate change through national security; why climate change is considered a top threat to the U.S.; how it’s impacting the core duties of the U.S. military; where are global ‘hot spots’; how climate change could lead to further political polarization in the U.S.; the value of a National Adaptation Plan and more! Topics covered: Why we need to elevate the urgency of climate change. Climate change is rated at the top of the list of threats to the United States.  Climate change is a ‘shaping risk’ that influences many other national security topics. How does climate change affect the core duties of the US military. Climate change doesn’t fit neatly into how the intelligence community has normally organized itself. Where are global climate ‘hot spots’ regarding national security. Younger national security professionals more likely t

In the latest episode of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Dr. Ladd Keith and Dr Sara Meerow to discuss their new book, Planning for Urban Heat Resilience.  Sara is an Assistant Professor at the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning at Arizona State University and Ladd is an Assistant Professor in Planning and Chair of Sustainable Built Environments at The University of Arizona.  Ladd and Sara discuss: the complexities of urban heat; heat equity; planning tools; case studies of cities doing urban heat resilience effectively and policies for federal approaches to heat management. Topics covered: Review of new book, Planning for Urban Heat Resilience Understanding the complexities of urban heat. Developing urban heat strategies. What is ‘heat equity’? Planning tools or urban heat resilience. Case studies of cities doing urban heat planning effectively. How this book could be relevant to federal policy makers. Resources and networks for planners focusing on extreme heat. Advancing urban heat res

In the latest episode of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Leo Goldsmith of ICF and  Dr. Michael Mendez, Assistant Professor of Environmental Planning and Policy at the University of California, Irvine, to discuss their new paper, Queer and Present Danger: Understanding the Disparate Impacts of Disasters on LGBTQ+ Communities. Mike and Leo discuss the unique vulnerabilities of this community in disaster relief; the myth of gay affluence; how faith-based groups have a history of discriminatory practices in disaster relief; how cohesive is the LGBTQ community and how race is a problem even in LGBTQ groups. Mike and Leo also lay out specific policy recommendations on how adaptation planners can properly consider this community in their planning. Topics covered: This paper was the first highlighting the lack of laws and policies protecting the LGBTQ community in disaster relief. What is the myth of gay affluence? How faith-based groups are on the front lines of disaster relief and how some of them discriminate

In the latest episode of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Dr. Michael Mendez, Assistant Professor of Environmental Planning and Policy at the University of California, Irvine. Michael shares his research on how undocumented immigrants are particularly vulnerable to wildfires and climate change; why FEMA doesn’t provide disaster aid to these workers; what is a “worthy disaster victim” and how adaptation planners can incorporate climate equity into their plans. These topics and much more! Topics covered: Why are undocumented immigrants particularly vulnerable to wildfires and pandemics. FEMA won’t cover undocumented workers. That needs to change! Could climate change be a catalyst for real immigration reform? Who is a “worthy disaster victim.” What is “contextual vulnerability”? Recommendations on how to consider climate justice issues in your adaptation plan (or your updates) How understanding the differential impacts on undocumented immigrants can help improve disaster planning to protect the most vulnera

In the latest episode of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Dr. Elizabeth Mattiuzzi of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Lizzie’s latest research unpacks the ways low- and moderate-income communities are vulnerable to climate risks. Learn the role of housing insecurity in communities’ climate vulnerabilities. Her research also uncovers awareness levels among organizations dealing with climate risk and what impacts they perceive are affecting their community members. It’s important research with many implications for on the ground adaptation practitioners! Sign up for a free two-week trial of Wondrium. Stream video lectures, documentaries & more! Make sure you use the America Adapts link when you register here: Wondrium.com/adapts Donate to America Adapts Listen to America Adapts on your favorite app here! Facebook and Twitter: https://www.facebook.com/americaadapts/ @usaadapts @LizzyMattiuzz @sffed Donate to America Adapts Follow on Apple Podcasts Follow on Android Doug Parsons and Speakin

In the latest episode of America Adapts, Doug Parsons hosts Crystal Skillman, an award winning playwright, who has written a new climate themed play, Rain and Zoe Save the World.  The show is co-hosted by regular guest, “cli-fi” expert, Dr. Amy Brady.  Amy and Doug discuss with Crystal what inspired her to write a climate themed play, why the arts are so important in climate communication and how the theater has driven societal change in the past. It’s an exciting and unusual episode for America Adapt! Topics discussed: Theater as a climate communication tool. Plot and inspiration for the play, Rain and Zoe Save the World How Crystal weaved climate changed into a dramatic storyline How the theater has driven societal change in the past. Why we need an all hands approach for climate communication. This episode sponsored by newBin The solution to the plastic waste crisis is right in your pocket https://www.startengine.com/newBin Donate to America Adapts Listen to America Adapts on your favorite app here! Fa