UVM Professor Appointed to National Academies Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate

 

 
Lesley-Ann Dupigny-Giroux joins the national organization tasked with being at the forefront of emerging, contemporary sciences, including the U.S. response to climate change
 
Dec. 7, 2022
BURLINGTON, Vt. - Lesley-Ann Dupigny-Giroux, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Geography and Geosciences at the University of Vermont and the Vermont state climatologist, has been appointed to serve on the Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate (BASC) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. She is the first Vermont-based scientist to receive this prestigious invitation.
 
In her new appointment, Dupigny-Giroux will work with the Board to review, better understand, and make recommendations regarding approaches and responses to the issues and challenges related to weather, climate, and climate change currently facing the United States. One of the most important projects overseen by the BASC is the National Climate Assessment, a report mandated by Congress that analyzes the impacts of climate change across the country.
 
Dupigny-Giroux has been involved with the National Climate Assessment since the initial version was published in 2000. She is presently an author of the national chapter on water and water resources for the Fifth National Climate Assessment, which is currently underway. Her previous role was lead author of the Northeast chapter on the same topic for the Fourth National Climate Assessment, which came out in 2018.
 
"What excites me most about this appointment is the opportunity to work with people who are passionate about looking at all aspects of science and not afraid to call things as they are," says Dupigny-Giroux. "We have a great responsibility because the work we do will help shape climate change thinking for the whole nation. It is a tremendous honor and privilege to be part of this Board."
 
Dupigny-Giroux also notes that her appointment to the BASC provides an opportunity to bring local climate-related research and work into the national climate conversation and vice versa. Through that newly created synergy, she says, "we'll be better able to serve the needs of Vermonters as well as national agencies and the Academies."
 
An expert in floods, droughts, and severe weather, Dupigny-Giroux has served as Vermont State Climatologist since 1997 and is the immediate past president of the American Association of State Climatologists. She was appointed to the Vermont Climate Council in 2020 and continues to serve that body as the climate change science expert. She holds a B.Sc. in Physical Geography and Development Studies from the University of Toronto (1989), and both an M.Sc.(1992) in Climatology and Hydrology and a Ph.D. (1996) in Climatology and Geographic Information Systems from McGill University. Her current research focuses on climate literacy and the relationships among hydroclimatic natural hazards, geospatial climate, and land-surface processes.
 
The Board of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, which meets at least twice annually, just wrapped its final meeting of 2022. Dupigny-Giroux will serve on the BASC through Sept. 30, 2025.
 
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