Description:

There’s a tornado coming my way? Why should I care? 

There’s flooding in my hometown? Why should I care? 

It’s the 6th warmest year on record? Why should I care? 

Organizations such as the National Weather Service (NWS), the National Water Center (NWC), and the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) are tasked to take in a plethora of information, backed by science, and construct an appropriate message to users and stakeholders. However, with information overload, exacerbated by weather and climate fatigue, as well as other societal factors, it can be hard for the public to absorb this information and take the necessary action. How can we, as physical and social scientists, convey the urgency so stakeholders act appropriately? 

One way is by providing “socioeconomic” context to our products and services. More specifically, addressing “kitchen table issues,” such as equity, infrastructure, national security, energy, agriculture, health, and others, to create an empathetic response. With the recent release of the 2020 US Census, along with other publicly available datasets, it makes sense to integrate these data streams to make people understand how our atmosphere affects not only themselves, but also others around them. 

This session will showcase best uses of integrating socioeconomic thinking to the weather, water and climate enterprise, including but not limited to, highlighting disadvantaged communities, providing equitable access to products and services, and finding ways to make people act upon weather, water and climate information in their neck of the woods.