Science

Science Underpins the Work of Citizens’ Climate Lobby

Citizens’ Climate Lobby bases its work and policy initiatives on scientific evidence. In fact, you can study and learn about the science behind climate change on the organization’s website in the section, “Climate Change Science.” Topics range from greenhouse gases to the role of carbon dioxide, ozone to the impact of human beings on the climate. Citizens’ Climate Lobby provides this information free of charge as a public service.

Another insightful training CCL provides is called, “Weather Attribution Science,” and it focuses on the background behind attribution science – the process of quantifying the contribution of global warming to extreme weather – and other events. The training includes a discussion about the process for connecting climate change with extreme weather events.

Extreme weather is a significant concern for citizens of the State of Texas. As Texas Tribune laments, “Texas weather extremes likely to become normal, scientists say” (2024). Alejandra Martinez and Yuriko Schumacher report, “Climate scientists and academics say that as emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases continue to push temperatures higher, severe weather in the state is likely to worsen. They add that Texas will likely see a growing gap between wet parts of the state and dry parts as climate change alters precipitation patterns and warms oceans.” You can also listen to the article by click on the link above.

More recently, on May 3, 2025 Guardian US shared, “Scientific societies to do climate assessment after Trump administration dismissed authors.”

Two major US scientific societies have announced they will join forces to produce peer-reviewed research on the climate crisis’s impact days after Donald Trump’s administration dismissed contributors to a key Congress-mandated report on climate crisis preparedness.

On Friday, the American Meteorological Society (AMS) and the American Geophysical Union (AGU) said that they will work together to produce over 29 peer-reviewed journals that will cover all aspects of climate change including observations, projections, impacts, risks and solutions.

The collaboration comes just days after Trump’s administration dismissed all contributors to the sixth National Climate Assessment, the US government’s flagship study on climate change. The dismissal of nearly 400 contributors had left the future of the study in question.

We are delighted to see the good work continue. Factual information, rather than gossip and misinformation, are the best way to make qualified, realistic and informed decisions when it comes to understanding and mitigating the effects of climate change, and to protecting the citizens of the State of Texas.

Megan Johnson wrote for Harvard T. H. Chan, “Stopping Misinformation: Scientists and Medical Professionals are Important Players in Communicating Reliable Information” (2025). She observes, “In a highly complex information ecosystem, news travels fast. Whether it’s dispersed through traditional news publications, social media, or fringe outlets, the news can get warped. That’s why communicators are trying to find the best ways to share their messaging accurately and promptly.”

It is great to see high level training being provided to the science community to help them deal with misinformation and to respond quickly. It would be great to see an educational program developed for the public as well. In the meantime, be sure to sign up on the Citizens’ Climate Lobby website for the fact- and science-based trainings discussed above.

Check out our Bluesky feed @cclatx!

One thing the Austin Chapter of CCL has learned since joining Bluesky during the final months of 2024, is that many scientists are active on the platform. You can find us at @cclatx.bluesky.social, and we do share scientific updates in addition to our own organizational information. If you are interested in science and the facts behind climate change, Bluesky is the place to be!

Once you join Bluesky, look under “Discover” and follow hashtags like #Science #Climate Science #Climate Politics #Climate Change Sciences #Climate Crisis #Climate & Sustainability #Climate Adaptation and more. You can also follow “Lists” like “Climate Science, Impacts and Solutions.” Katharine Hayhoe has several “starter packs” that help you quickly identify influential scientists to follow. Among them are, “US National Nature Assessment Authors,” “Climate Justice,” “Climate + Finance” (and more). Our experience on Bluesky has been terrific and we learn a lot every time we “log in.”

Science knows no country, because knowledge belongs to humanity, and is the torch which illuminates the world. Science is the highest personification of the nation because that nation will remain the first which carries the furthest the works of thought and intelligence.

Louis Pasteur, French scientist (1822-1895)

Lobby Day Volunteers

Year in Review & Holiday Greetings from Susan Adams, CCL Coordinator, Third Coast Region

Holiday greetings to our generous Third Coast climate donors!

I wanted to express my heartfelt gratitude for your generosity to Citizens’ Climate Education Third Coast in 2023. Thanks to you and the other amazing supporters from around the region, we were able to have hit impactful milestones like the following:

  • Hosted our first ever Texas State Lobby Day in Austin in March, where 81 volunteers from across Texas met with 66 State House and Senate offices to talk about transmission bills.
  • Held our 9th Annual Regional Conference in New Orleans, making it our most inclusive ever by offering 50 tree ticket waivers, 42 free/discounted student tickets, and 21 travel grants (see the highlight video here).
  • Funded $6,000 in travel scholarships to 13 volunteers so that they could attend our CCL National Conference and Lobby Day in Washington, D.C. in June. 
  • Funded several rural outreach events, including the 3-day Feather Fest in Galveston, Texas in April, sending volunteers from Lubbock to Odessa, Texas to participate in a public EPA air pollution hearing, hosting a chapter relaunch in College Station, Texas, and hosting a holiday gathering in Southaven, Missippi. 
  • Supported fund raising efforts like the Austin chapter’s Tour Divide fundraising appeal.
  • Provided over $4,000  in chapter support, including tabling materials, food, and event fees for student chapters at Concordia University and Texas A&M University, and smaller chapters throughout Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas.

Please read more about the amazing successes of our Texas State Lobby Day and 9th Annual Regional Conference in New Orleans in these reports:

Looking to 2024, we plan to use our donor funds to support initiatives like the following:

  • Support 2024 Regional Chapter Expansion, targeting outreach events to launch or revive 15 targeted chapters in our newly enlarged Third Coast Plus region, which now includes Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas. Tentative targets include Corpus Christi, El Paso, Galveston, Baton Rouge and Shreveport.
  • Fund travel scholarships from across our region for the CCL National Conference in Washington, D.C., June 8 – 12.
  • Support our 10th annual Regional Conference being tentatively scheduled for October 5 at Texas A&M University Galveston. Our ability to offer free tickets and travel grants is crucial to making these events inclusive.
  • Support Get Out the Vote efforts throughout the region, including candidate climate policy forums, postcards campaigns, and more.

Want to pitch in for 2024? You can donate through our webpage here at any time! 

Finally, I’d like to share a brief video our program team created last week in honor of all that our CCL volunteers accomplished, through your support, in 2023! I can’t wait to see what we accomplish in 2024. 

Have a wonderful holiday,

Susan Adams, Coordinator for the Third Coast Region