Access to climate.gov was blocked earlier this summer and its production team was fired, while the site was left online but intentionally buried by political appointees at NOAA. Former climate.gov staff, led by Rebecca Lindsey, are creating a new nonprofit, climate.us, to restore accessible climate information and expand services. Climate.us plans to provide public-facing interpretations of climate science and practical services such as helping local governments map increased flooding risk from climate change. Lindsey has recruited former colleagues to volunteer, and the fledgling effort has received legal help and a short-term grant to develop its vision. Demand exists for agency-independent climate literacy content.
Earlier this summer, access to climate.gov one of the most widely used portals of climate information on the internet was thwarted by the Trump administration, and its production team was fired in the process. The website offered years' worth of accessibly written material on climate science. The site is technically still online but has been intentionally buried by the team of political appointees who now run the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Now, a team of climate communication experts including many members of the former climate.gov team is working to resurrect its content into a new organization with an expanded mission. Their effort's new website, climate.us, would not only offer public-facing interpretations of climate science, but could also begin to directly offer climate-related services, such as assisting local governments with mapping increased flooding risk due to climate change.
In the first few weeks after the Trump administration ended their work, Lindsey's new team has received a steady flow of outside support, including legal support, and a short-term grant that has helped them develop a vision for what they'd like to do next. The things that were most popular on climate.gov were things that basically just taught people about climate, both natural climate and climate change, said Lindsey.
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