US Global Change Research Program (USGCRP)

The U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), commissioned by the Global Change Research Act (GCRA) of 1990, serves the Congressional mandate for a “comprehensive and integrated U.S. research program which will assist the Nation and the world to understand, assess, predict, and respond to human-induced and natural processes of global change.” The program is overseen by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) of the Executive Office of the President (EOP), and is steered by the Subcommittee on Global Change Research (SGCR) of the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC). The SGCR is composed of senior officials representing the 13 participating Federal agencies. The program also includes several interagency working groups (IWGs) with members representing Federal agencies in Washington, DC and across the US.

 

The USGCRP National Coordination Office (NCO), located in Washington, DC, is comprised of a mix of UCAR employees, Federal detailees, and scientific fellows and interns, which worked in tandem with UCAR-Joint Office for Science Support (UCAR-JOSS) in Boulder, CO to provide for day-to-day operations, technical coordination and integration of interagency research and development efforts, program planning and management support, and communication and engagement opportunities for USGCRP.

USGCRP produces the National Climate  Assessment (NCA), a status report about climate change science and impacts that is delivered to the President, Congress, and the public every four years, the third and most recent of which was released in May 2014.

Since 1989, USGCRP has produced Our Changing Planet, an annual report that summarizes recent programmatic achievements, near-term plans, and progress in implementing long-term goals.