Week Two Assignment Reflections by Jeff Dillon

Problems with Tech

abritton24 — 2024-07-31 18:22:52 UTC

I enjoyed learning more and exploring the GPM website, but I had issues using giovanni. Working from home today on my laptop so not sure if the problem will still occur on my office computer. I will attempt tomorrow and fingers crossed it will work better!

Survey

abritton24 — 2024-07-31 18:26:51 UTC

Though I have a background in ecology I actually really enjoy taking surveys, social science is cool! I found this one to be super easy to use, I had my husband take the survey as well. I was in the alarmed category where he was in the concerned category. Makes sense for our personalities.

UMD Flood Map animation

sunitahalasz — 2024-07-31 20:23:18 UTC

Andrea Portier also mentioned this tool, and I found it interesting to animate. I zoomed way in, to get better resolution for my area of interest. It's clunky, but once you figure it out, it has a good, simple picture of flood events.

Watched the Whole Thing

kevin_cody — 2024-07-31 20:45:48 UTC

I really enjoyed it and the visuals so much I watched the whole series and many of the interviews. The visuals were great and clear. Having those are key to any type of communicating, but the big takeaway was about thinking in terms of a positive tomorrow while understanding the problem in a way that is communicable. There is a lot to digest in those videos that can spark some ideas.

Reduce Food Waste #1

sunitahalasz — 2024-07-31 20:45:59 UTC

"Roughly one-third of the world’s food is never eaten. By reducing loss and waste, we can reduce the need for land and resources used to produce food as well as the greenhouse gases released in the process."

I think this is such an important message to share with all audiences. First of all, people may not have thought about it yet, and when they do realize the complexity of the food production and distribution system, it's a big lightbulb moment for understanding carbon emissions. Second, it's something you can think about on a global level, as well as a personal level (your very own alimentary canal!). Third, the concept of reducing food waste it is very acceptable across the opinion spectrum.

LHASA landslide tool

sunitahalasz — 2024-07-31 20:48:17 UTC

The LHASA model that Andrea Portier mentioned uses GPM data combined with slope maps. It feels even more powerful when you see the data validation with location of actual landslides and known fatalities.

Yale Climate Opinion Maps

sunitahalasz — 2024-07-31 21:42:47 UTC

I love drilling down to the county level with these maps

Great content!

abritton24 — 2024-07-31 22:00:32 UTC

I watched all of the videos as well, but did not have time to watch the interviews. I want to go back later and watch some of them. I manage our volunteer program where I work and I can see these being great resources to have our volunteers watch to give them more information and context about climate change. Spent some time looking at other resources at Project Drawdown as well and found it all really usefuf!

Differing views of 'Happening' vs Harm Me Personally

reuven_bank — 2024-08-01 16:10:54 UTC

I thought it was interesting that across all demographics, there was a significant decline in the % of americans who thought climate change would harm them personally vs. thought it is happening.

I think that by telling new stories and showing local impacts, we can help work to bridge this disconnect and demonstrate the how pervasive climate impacts really are.

thought

WildRoseEd — 2024-08-01 20:43:39 UTC

I'm curious if Y3C is capturing all the SASSY data and integrating into their master mind of data for the 6 America's work

Cool Remote Sensing Video

WildRoseEd — 2024-08-01 20:44:59 UTC

I really appreciate this GMP short video...

How I use Project Drawdown

WildRoseEd — 2024-08-01 20:49:05 UTC

With my people, I have them sort the solutions by the 2 different scenarios and notice what is at the top of the list that is actually relevant to the landscape/geography where they live/work. Then we look closely at the NCA5 Key Messages for our region. Then we align the most effective solutions to the issues of our region. Finally we consider all the types of skills, vocations, professions, etc... that are needed to accomplish these solutions. Then we consider how to promote, elevate, encourage opportunities for people to train for these jobs... many jobs are climate green/climate jobs that most never consider as much.

Water Cycle Education

WildRoseEd — 2024-08-01 20:54:18 UTC

After looking at the Education materials from GPM I'm curious to know when they'll start to integrate the new 'text book' water cycle schematic and focus on pools and fluxes from the USGS... it's much more realistic from a systems approach

brittanyguntor — 2024-08-02 13:50:41 UTC

Project Drawdown is an incredible resource! I was surprised to see the potential impact of reducing food waste and moving towards plant-rich diets. My sibling works with a program that redistributes leftover food from college cafeterias to local food banks. This is a great way to get involved on a local level, both in reducing waste, and in finding ways to support those living with food insecurity in our own communities. I highly recommend reaching out to local college cafeterias and encouraging them to donate food that would otherwise be wasted.

brittanyguntor — 2024-08-02 14:21:48 UTC

I zoomed into the county level on the Yale Climate Opinion Map, and was excited to see that 81% of people in my county believe that climate change is happening! That's +9 above the national average, and higher than I expected. It was surprising to me that only 50% of my county believes that they have personally experienced the effects of global warming. We have been experiencing significantly less snow in Massachusetts than in previous years. (I haven't used my snow tires in years!) Storms have been more intense and more damaging in many areas. It feels impossible to ignore! This presents an opportunity to further educate the public on the effects of climate change on a local scale. As interpreters we know that if we can make the message personal, we can make a difference!

Fun with Giovanni

margotlester — 2024-08-02 19:36:30 UTC

I goofed around with Giovanni, trying out different variables and locations. Finally settled on plotting hydrology and precip for the state on my birthday. With more practice, I can get faster and decent enough at this to produce graphics ahead of presentations and maybe even use this live in small group settings.

I also enjoyed learned more about how GPM data is used in different sectors.

Food waste

margotlester — 2024-08-02 19:44:17 UTC

I've seen this series before and enjoyed revisiting it. I'm especially focused on food waster right now, as I'm helping plan two conferences and we're trying to be more aggressive about it. We're working with the caterers on prep and leftovers handling, and are going to design tabletop tent cards and QRs to deliver some educational content. At the Hollywood Climate Summit last month, they did all vegetarian food, in addition to encouraging people to bring their own utensils and having only biodegradable plates on hand. Veg-only catering may be a stretch goal for the events I'm working on, but I'm going to propose it!

SASSY & maps

margotlester — 2024-08-02 19:54:00 UTC

I shared the survey with a friend and even though we were both "alarmed", we had a great discussion about why. He lives in rural Iowa and I'm here in suburban NC so we discussed our different climates/weather and specific impacts that were giving us heartburn. We also compared our county opinion data, which we both accurately guessed before looking. We both found it satisfying to have a deliberate discussion about these topics. I'm now thinking about hosting a climate café at a conference I'm working on next year where we can host attendees and locals in similar explorations.

jennifer_rowlen — 2024-08-02 20:41:04 UTC

I found the Yale Climate Opinion Map very interesting. The two rural counties that I live and work in, to my surprise, reflected higher levels of acknowledgement that "Global Warming is happening" than I expected. One country was even above the national average!

The SASSY questionnaire showed that both my supervisor and I are "alarmed". We both have struggled with offering our audiences messages of hope. I feel that the Project Drawdown Solutions site will be very helpful in offering our audience tangible solutions.

Current Precipitation "Ridge"

defreitasm1 — 2024-08-05 13:20:07 UTC

I found it fitting to utilize the GPM tool that Andrea showed us to look at precipitation models that are currently happening across the US. Besides Hurricane Debby making landfall in Florida, there is a ridge of heavy precipitation along the east coast of the US preceding the Hurricane. This tool is interesting to use to see not only the flow and pattern of rain anywhere but also the amount and intensity with which it occurs. It also goes to show how we can use it to map out hurricanes and see their eyewall. I believe that this tool should be utilized more to map precipitation trends at the local level which then helps to plan for extreme flood events and be better prepared.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction

defreitasm1 — 2024-08-05 13:52:42 UTC

Project Drawdown focuses on so many things Climate Related. It is a truly amazing resource to use. Dr. Bagley really got alot of us thinking about how every single job to ever exist is a "climate Job". And my takeaway from it all is that we can each do our part to help one of the biggest contributors to Climate Change - GHG Emissions. I love how much resources they have for "drawdown Solutions" specifically in relation to Emissions solutions. The Solutions library has a wide range of solutions for every sector.

Survey & Climate Opinion Maps

defreitasm1 — 2024-08-05 14:19:12 UTC

The survey I got alarmed which I know I was but it's very surprising to know that some persons aren't even concerned. To be aware of what is happening around you is very important which brought me tot he Opinion Maps of Florida, specifically Miami-Dad and Broward county. At the county level I expected a higher percentage of persons who think global warming is happening. For such a large county I expected at least 86-90% as much of the county is on the coastal region and is faced with alot of sea level rise. It is forecasted by 2060 that Miami will no longer be as the rising sea levels will take it over.

Excuse my blurry photo as my computer did not want to screenshot anything lol

Project Drawdown Job Function Action Guides

emilybohr — 2024-08-05 15:40:17 UTC

When exploring Project Drawdown, i also came across their job function action guides, which I plan to share with our Green Business Partners program team. I feel like this gives Fairfax County businesses "practical and shareable resources that highlight specific, high-impact climate actions" that they can share with their employees, and really make being a green business a lifestyle for them and their employees.