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Transmittal Memo

November 2006

Members of Congress:

We are pleased to transmit a copy of Our Changing Planet: The U.S. Climate Change Science Program for Fiscal Year 2007. The report describes the activities and plans of the Climate Change Science Program (CCSP), which incorporates the U.S. Global Change Research Program, established under the Global Change Research Act of 1990, and the Climate Change Research Initiative, established by the President in 2001. CCSP coordinates and integrates scientific research on climate and global change supported by 13 participating departments and agencies of the U.S. Government.

This Fiscal Year 2007 edition of Our Changing Planet highlights recent advances supported by CCSP-participating agencies in each of the program’s research and observational elements, as called for in the Strategic Plan for the U.S. Climate Change Science Program released in July 2003. An addition to the report includes an analysis of the significant progress that CCSP has made toward its overarching goals since the release of the Strategic Plan.

The document describes a wide range of new and emerging observational capabilities which, combined with the program’s analytical work, are leading to remarkable advances in understanding the underlying processes responsible for climate variability and change. It illustrates advances in U.S. modeling capabilities to represent past, present, and potential future changes in the physical and biological dimensions of the Earth system. The report also highlights progress being made to explore the uses and limitations of evolving knowledge to manage risks and opportunities related to climate variability and change. The final chapter documents the program’s numerous current activities to promote cooperation between the U.S. scientific community and its worldwide counterparts.

The document also outlines how CCSP plans to continue implementation of the Strategic Plan during FY 2007. The program will continue to emphasize work on 21 scientific synthesis and assessment reports. The first of these, Temperature Trends in the Lower Atmosphere: Steps for Understanding and Reconciling Differences, was released in April of this year and answers a set of key questions related to ongoing observations of the Earth’s temperature.

CCSP is committed to its mission to facilitate the creation and application of knowledge of the Earth’s global environment through research, observations, decision support, and communication. We thank the CCSP-participating agencies for their close cooperation, and we look forward to working with Congress in the continued development of this important program.

Carlos M. Gutierrez Secretary of Commerce Chair, Committee on Climate Change Science and Technology Integration

Samuel W. Bodman Secretary of Energy Vice Chair, Committee on Climate Change Science and Technology Integration

John H. Marburger III, Ph.D. Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy Executive Director, Committee on Climate Change Science and Technology Integration