Dr. Chris Field: The Stephen Schneider Award

Ken Alex, Director, Governor Brown's Office of Planning and Research
Chris Field, Director, Department of Global Ecology, Carnegie Institution for Science
Jane Lubchenco, University Distinguished Professor and Advisor in Marine Studies, Oregon State University

The award is underwritten by Tom R. Burns, Nora Machado, and Michael Haas.

With 2015 on track to be the hottest year on record, climate disruption is moving from a future problem to current reality for many people. The impacts—partially attributable to climate disruption—are all around us, from the searing drought to less coastal fog and raging forest fires. What can the latest science tell us about what is happening now and what can we expect in the future?

Dr. Chris Field is a leading IPCC author and the United States nominated him to run in the election for IPCC chair, which was won by a Korean economist. The first part of this program will be a conversation with Dr. Field on the latest climate science and the impact fossil fuels are having on global freshwater.

In the second half hour, Jane Lubchenco and Ken Alex will join Dr. Field on stage for a wide-ranging conversation. They will discuss whether the Paris climate conference was a significant accomplishment or just a big binky. California had a visible role at the talks and we'll learn what Governor Brown did over there. They will also touch on what lies ahead for the oceans, seafood and the drought.

After the radio program, Climate One will present Dr. Field the fifth annual Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Climate Science Communication. The $15,000 award is given to a natural or social scientist who has made extraordinary scientific contributions and communicated that knowledge to a broad public in a clear and compelling fashion. The award was established in honor of Stephen Henry Schneider, one of the founding fathers of climatology, who died in 2010.