Climate Impacts and Vulnerability

We are living in a world of changing climates. CCR helps agencies, businesses, NGOs, and individuals, prepare for and adapt to climate change by providing state-of-the-art science and expert knowledge. CCR is an active participant in the Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts, developing statistically and dynamically downscaled climate projections for Wisconsin and the broader region to guide vulnerability assessments (e.g. Green Bay ecosystem health and hypoxia risk) and the formation of effective adaptation strategies. For the broader Great Lakes Basin, CCR researchers have been investigating impacts of climate change on lake levels, lake temperatures, lake-effect snow, and wildlife species vulnerability. At a global scale, we are studying Arctic amplification and resulting impacts on the mid-latitude circulation and weather extremes.

Principal Investigators

Dan Vimont, Michael Notaro, Steve Vavrus, David Lorenz, Paul Block, Sara Hotchkiss

Current and Recent Projects

Climate Change And AIS Modeling
Michael Notaro, CCR Associate Director, Senior Scientist

Role of Low-Level Clouds in the Accelerated Warming of the Great Lakes — A Dual Observational and Regional Modeling Assessment
Michael Notaro, CCR Associate Director, Senior Scientist
Steve Vavrus, Senior Scientist

Observed and Simulated Trends in Heavy Lake Effect Snow Events Across the Great Lakes Basin
Michael Notaro, CCR Associate Director, Senior Scientist
Steve Vavrus, Senior Scientist

How Will the Great Lakes Water Levels Respond to Climate Change: Regional Modeling for Application to Decision-Making
Michael Notaro, CCR Associate Director, Senior Scientist

Downscaling Climate Predictions for Michigan and the Great Lakes
Michael Notaro, CCR Associate Director, Senior Scientist
David Lorenz, Associate Scientist

Simulation of Extreme Arctic Cyclones in IPCC AR5 Experiments
Steve Vavrus, Senior Scientist

The Role of Arctic Amplification in Modifying Mid-latitude Atmospheric Circulation and Promoting Extreme Weather Events
Steve Vavrus, Senior Scientist

Change in the Extratropical Circulation in Response to Global Warming
David Lorenz, Associate Scientist

Downscaling Climate in the Great Lakes Region for Regional Climate Impact Assessment
Dan Vimont, Professor

Future Changes in Weather Extremes Derived from Statistically Downscaled Climate Projections for the Great Lakes Region
Michael Notaro, CCR Associate Director, Senior Scientist
Steve Vavrus, Senior Scientist

Restoring the Health of the Green Bay Ecosystem Under a Changing Climate: Modeling Land Use, Management, Future Outcomes
David Lorenz, Associate Scientist

Green Bay Hypoxia: Biogeochemical Dynamics, Watershed Inputs and Climate Change
Dan Vimont, Professor

Historical and Projected Climate Trends in US National Parks for Vulnerability Analyses and Adaptation of Resource Management
Jack Williams, Director
Michael Notaro, CCR Associate Director, Senior Scientist
Dan Vimont, Professor

Climate Change and the Wisconsin Environment: Identifying Likely Changes and Key Vulnerabilities in Wisconsin’s Terrestrial Habitats and Bird and Mammal Species
Sara Hotchkiss, Professor