The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-R) is the next series to follow the existing GOES system currently operating over the Western Hemisphere. A major advancement over the current GOES include a new capability for total lightning detection (cloud and cloud-to-ground flashes) of the Western Hemisphere from the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM). This will aid in forecasting severe storms and tornado activity, and convective weather impacts on aviation safety and efficiency. In parallel with the instrument development, a GOES-R Risk Reduction Science Team and Algorithm Working Group Lightning Applications Team have begun to develop performance monitoring tools and new applications using the GLM alone, in conjunction with other instruments, and merged or blended integrated observing system products combining satellite, radar, in-situ data and numerical models. Proxy total lightning data from the NASA Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS) on the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite and regional ground-based lightning networks are being used to develop the pre-launch algorithms, test data sets and applications, as well as improve our knowledge of thunderstorm initiation and evolution. In this presentation we discuss two recent exciting projects getting underway in late 2011. The first is a national field test in the US to demonstrate the ability of total lightning observations to increase the public warning lead-time by up to 50% and reduce the false alarm rates for severe and tornadic storms. The second is an international field campaign in Sao Paulo, Brazil beginning in October that will collect an extensive GLM proxy data set that will be used to support the development of algorithms and applications for the constellation of US and European geostationary lightning mappers.