Returned to Campus for the 1st Center of Climate, Coastal, and Marine Studies "Toward Making Climate Science Actionable" by Dr. Mi Ming

Dr. Ming, Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Boston College, is an expert in climate dynamics and atmospheric science and is widely regarded as one of the top scientists in the field. His scholarship has covered numerous topics in climate and atmospheric science, including the effects of aerosols on climate, changes in monsoon dynamics, and changes in global precipitation and circulation. As a member of the planning committee, I attended the first talk and was enthralled by the scientific modeling, predictability, and alerts his field has been calculating for decades (based on years of research in the scientific community. His concluding remarks?

• Climate change knows no border - another reason to for thinking globally, especially in regard to food security (internationally)
• Extreme weather events may pose greater risks in a changing climate (like what we've been experienced around the world for over a decade)
• Both natural variability and climate change contribute to volatility
• Advances in climate science offer new opportunities for enhancing resilience and sustainability
• Academia may help facilitate the knowledge transfer from government to business

Of course, I was also thinking about the visuals created from cross-pollinated studies that didn't paint the most optimistic portrait, and the coupling of this against the doubt populations for their governments and science, in general, painted a somewhat disturbing picture. Alas, Chicken Little, I'm not one who is too keen on doomsday pessimism, so I will balance the talk with what can be learned from life itself, scientific reporting, and ecosystems that will either adapt or not adapt to such changes - the human side of it all being the most alarming.

I like to believe that humans like Dr. Ming are operating from the greatness of scientific understanding and am inclined to follow their lifelong work than political naysayers looking for votes. There's never been a time in human history where alarms and bells haven't been ringing, but it was hard to refute the vast amount of data he and his scientific community are reporting. 

And of course, I am thinking about 3rd world nations that are feeling the brunt of this the most (like Sudan) and am thinking about What is the What? Our modern day conveniences come at a cost, and I believe I left most interested in the use of cloud as possibility being one solution to the heating atmosphere, although he warned no one knows what that might do if nations begin manufacturing clouds to curb a protective shield for their nations. 

It's complicated. We're complex. And I have to rethink my optimism of the planet, with my cynicism for humanity. I was the "Road to Hell" once for Halloween, and I understand the best of intentions. I love a brilliant mind, though, and kudos to him for his research and for the Center of Climate, Coastal, and Marine Studies inauguration at Fairfield University. Every little bit counts...I hope. 

Hello, October.