NC State Named Southeast Climate Science Hub

North Carolina State University will lead the U.S. Department of the Interior’s new Southeast Climate Science Center. The regional center will  provide scientific research needed to understand more about climate change and use the research to work with natural- and cultural-resource managers to plan for climate-change impacts.

Up to 10 federal scientists will move to NC State to lead the center and collaborate with the many scientists – from ecologists to extension agents – at the university whose work addresses climate change. Up to $7.5 million per year will be available to fund collaborative research and resource-management projects. An initial $1.5 million grant will help establish the center, says Dr. Damian Shea, professor and department head of NC State’s biology department and the primary investigator for the grant.

“As the climate of the Southeastern United States changes, many challenges requiring a central network of researchers, data and communication will arise,” Shea says. “For example, under such conditions many species from tropical regions will be capable of living in the Southeast, including new diseases and their vectors. By the same token, many species currently in the region will be unable to persist without aid. To deal with these challenges of managing wild species and their consequences, we need major collaborations from scientists across many fields.”

Six of NC State’s 10 colleges will be involved with the center, Shea says. NC State provides expertise in basic biology, climate change, and applied conservation and management research along with connections to farmers, resource managers, business people and citizens across the Southeast. NC State also brings a regional expertise network to the project based upon its extensive array of science and research partnerships, he adds.

Poised to build upon NC State’s – and the Research Triangle’s – strength in researching climate-change issues, the center will be accompanied by the development of a new climate-change curriculum, leading to new research and education offerings for students.

The Southeast Climate Science Center is the second of eight new regional centers planned by the Interior Department. They are a key element of the Interior Department’s first-ever coordinated strategy to address current and future impacts of climate change on America’s land, water, ocean, fish, wildlife and cultural resources.

More information on the center can be found here.

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