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Letter of Transmittal

October 2007

Members of Congress:

We are pleased to transmit a copy of Our Changing Planet: The U.S. Climate Change Science Program for Fiscal Year 2008. The report describes the activities and plans of the Climate Change Science Program (CCSP), which incorporates the U.S. Global Change Research Program, established under the Global Change Research Act of 1990, and the Climate Change Research Initiative, established by the President in 2001. CCSP coordinates and integrates scientific research on climate and global change supported by 13 participating departments and agencies of the U.S. Government.

This Fiscal Year 2008 edition of Our Changing Planet highlights recent advances and progress supported by CCSP-participating agencies in each of the program’s research and observational elements, as called for in the Strategic Plan for the U.S. Climate Change Science Program released in July 2003.

The document describes a wide range of advances in understanding the underlying processes responsible for climate variability and change, such as advances in understanding of climate change at high latitudes. It also describes progress on understanding the ongoing and projected effects of climate change on nature and society, including the interconnected relationships between climate, forests, and wildfire. The document also describes how observational and predictive capabilities are being improved and used to create tools to support decisionmaking at local, regional, and national scales to cope with environmental variability and change.

The document outlines how CCSP plans to continue implementation of the Strategic Plan during FY 2008. The program will continue to emphasize work on 21 scientific synthesis and assessment products, three of which have been completed. Two of these products were released in the past year. The first, entitled Scenarios of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Atmospheric Concentrations and Review of Integrated Scenario Development and Application, used computer-based models to assess the economic and technological implications of limiting greenhouse gas emissions. This product also described key principles underlying the development of global change scenarios. The second, entitled Effects of Climate Change on Energy Production and Use in the United States, summarized current understanding on how climate change could affect energy production, supply, and consumption in the United States. The remaining products are well underway.

CCSP is committed to its mission to facilitate the creation and application of knowledge of the Earth’s global environment through research, observations, decision support, and communication. We thank the CCSP-participating agencies for their close cooperation, and we look forward to working with Congress in the continued development of this important program.

Samuel W. Bodman Secretary of Energy Chair, Committee on Climate Change Science and Technology Integration

Carlos M. Gutierrez Secretary of Commerce Vice Chair, Committee on Climate Change Science and Technology Integration

John H. Marburger III Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy Executive Director, Committee on Climate Change Science and Technology Integration