SACRAMENTO, Calif.—From extreme heat to wildfires, California faces a variety of complex and interacting scenarios to adapt to climate change. The kind of science policy advice and resources needed to plan and act on these disaster resilience scenarios will be the focus of STAC events during the 2022 Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
CCST — the California Council on Science and Technology — organized three scientific sessions as part of the 2022 AAAS Annual Meeting, in addition to a series of virtual meetups showcasing its State Capital Policy Fellowship program for PhD scientists and engineers. A nonpartisan, nonprofit organization established through the California State Legislature, CCST engages leading experts in science and technology to advise policymakers at the state, legislative and member levels. from committee offices to executive branch agencies and departments.
All events will be held remotely as part of AAAS’ fully virtual Annual Meeting format. General, postdoctoral and student participants can purchase registration via meetings.aaas.org/registrationand media can apply for a free registration through this press registration link.
Browse the list below for a complete overview of CCST sessions at the 2022 AAAS Annual Meeting. To follow @CCSTorg and @CCSTFellows on Twitter for more updates on events during #AAASmtg weekend.
Friday, February 18, 2022
8:00 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. PST
Responding to wildfires amid worsening disasters
https://aaas.confex.com/aaas/2022/meetingapp.cgi/Session/28814
Featured topics and guest panelists:
Disparate impacts of wildfires on undocumented migrants
Dr. Michael MendezUniversity of California, Irvine
Wildfire Evacuation During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Dr. Stephen WongUniversity of Alberta
Cumulative effects of forest fires when losing power >
Dr. Gabrielle Wong-ParodiStanford University
Ongoing, complex and intersecting disasters – including wildfires, extreme heat, power outages, cyberattacks and the COVID-19 pandemic – are radically disrupting the way people live and work. Many of these types of disasters are becoming more frequent and severe, and communities are increasingly faced with the need to respond to multiple disasters at the same time or in rapid succession. Concurrent disasters can overload the disaster response system by increasing the resources needed at any given time. Worsening disasters can create a host of new challenges requiring modified response strategies. The increased frequency of uncontrolled wildfires is due to climate change, wildland development, and historical land use policies that have altered the natural fire regimes of ecosystems. Consequently, wildfires increasingly coexist with other disasters and impact wildfire suppression and recovery efforts. For example, in 2020, typical disaster response pathways like evacuations and muster shelters to protect the public from wildfires needed to balance pandemic precautions like social distancing to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus. 19. This panel will discuss the current scientific understanding of the drivers of fires, post-fire recovery, the challenges posed when wildfires intersect with other disasters, and opportunities for new response strategies to help reduce the burden. of several dangers at the same time.
(Moderated by CCST CEO, Dr. Amber Mace; Hosted by CCST Director of Scientific Services, Dr. Brie Lindsey, and CCST Senior Scientific Officer, Dr. Teresa Feo)
Friday, February 18, 2022
Noon – 12:45 p.m. PST
Improving community resilience to extreme heat in a changing climate
https://aaas.confex.com/aaas/2022/meetingapp.cgi/Session/28810
Featured topics and guest panelists:
Advances in remote sensing to inform adaptation to extreme heat in communities
Dr. Glynn HulleyNASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Emerging technologies to mitigate extreme heat
dr. Sumanjeet KaurLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Human-induced climate change makes heat waves hotter and more likely
Dr Michael WehnerLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Communities around the world are experiencing record high temperatures and suffering from more frequent heat waves due to human-induced climate change. Many communities are at higher risk of extreme heat due to the “urban heat island” effect. Structures such as roads, pavements, and buildings absorb and re-radiate more solar heat than natural landscapes, including forests, parks, or bodies of water. Due to this “urban heat island” effect, dense urban cores are warmer than coastal and rural areas. Even small increases in average temperature can have dramatic effects on fertility, learning outcomes, work performance, accident rates, sleep quality, and overall health. Disadvantaged communities are disproportionately affected by extreme heat – they are not only hotter due to less vegetation cover, but are also less able to access technologies such as air conditioning which can provide relief when temperatures are high. This panel will discuss the current scientific understanding of the impact of extreme heat on society and ways to equitably reduce the impacts of this increasingly common climate catastrophe.
(Facilitated by Dr. Lindsey; hosted by Dr. Lindsey and Dr. Feo)
Sunday February 20, 2022
8:00 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. PST
Building a resilient energy grid to respond to escalating risks
https://aaas.confex.com/aaas/2022/meetingapp.cgi/Session/28583
Featured topics and guest panelists:
Network Resilience and Intelligence Platform
Alyona TeyberSLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Lessons learned from the extreme weather event
Dr Varun RaiUniversity of Texas at Austin
Large-scale threats to the power grid in the form of extreme events are increasingly common. Whether caused by natural events such as wildfires or hurricanes or man-made threats such as planned power outages or cyber attacks, network disruptions can have catastrophic consequences – loss of life, economic losses or even damage to national security. A measure of network resilience takes into account its ability to guarantee sufficient energy production to meet demand, its ability to remain operational in the face of threats and its ability to minimize the consequences of disturbances on the system. Increasing grid resilience will require the deployment of new and emerging technologies, such as batteries, thermal storage, microgrids and virtual power plants. Additionally, these technologies must be combined with access to data and tools for network operators that can model the development of threats on the network and inform decision-making during a potential disaster in development. Panelists will examine the threats to the energy grid and discuss the qualities that build its resilience, as well as the challenges inherent in measuring a system’s resilience. The conversation will also explore evidence-based technology and operational pathways to mitigate, respond to, and recover from network disruptions.
(Facilitated by CCST Senior Advisor, Dr. Jun Bando; Organized by Dr. John Thompson, CCST Senior Program Associate)
Virtual showroom
CCST Science and Technology Policy Fellowship
Opening hours of the information booth and potential candidates
https://virtual.aaas.org/Welcome
- Thursday, February 17: 4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. PST
- Friday, February 18: 11:00 a.m. – noon PST
- Friday, February 18: 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. PST
- Saturday February 19: 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. PST
- Saturday February 19: Noon – 1:00 p.m. PST
- Sunday February 20: 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. PST
- Sunday February 20: Noon – 1:00 p.m. PST
The CCST Science and Technology Policy Fellowship Program is recruiting scientists and engineers with PhDs for a year of public service and leadership training in the heart of policy-making in California – the capital of the United States. State, Sacramento. Fellows learn and grow inside the public policy arena through their internships with legislative members and committees, or with executive branch agencies and departments. Alumni have come to Sacramento with expertise as broad as cell biology, anthropology, psychology, chemical engineering, astrophysics, ecology, and more. invaluable policy insights to academia or industry. This CCST program was launched in 2009 modeled after the AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowship program and has since inspired other US states to launch their own science policy fellowships at the IAAS level. State.
Applications for the 2023 scholarship cohort must be submitted by March 7, 2022. Potential applicants, passionate champions, and anyone interested are all invited to stop by our virtual office hours to learn more about the impact and process of our Science Policy Fellowship.
(Hosted by CCST Fellowship Program Manager Renée Cashmere and CCST Senior Program Manager Puneet Bhullar)
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About the California Council on Science and Technology
The California Council on Science and Technology is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization established through the California State Legislature. It has been strengthening California policy through science and technology since 1988. We engage leading science and technology experts to advise state decision makers, ensuring that California policy is strengthened. and informed by scientific knowledge, research and innovation.
