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Welcome to the 2008 Briefing Series for Members of Congress and Staff

Previous Congressional Briefings

Congressional Sponsors: The following links leave the USGS site. Representative Earl Blumenauer Representative Wayne Gilchrest Representative Jim Moran Representative Rob Wittman Exhibit PDF (2.3 MB)   Powerpoints: Hosted by: The following links leave the USGS site. Dave Carter: Local Planning for Climage Change, Adaptation in a Social Environment of Scientific Uncertainty (989 KB) Rob Thieler: USGS Coastal Hazards Research, Improving Understanding to Increase Resilience (8.6 MB) Maargaret Davidson: Our Nation's Coastal Communities (5.5 MB) Handouts from the March 28 briefing: National Assessment of Coastal Vulnerability to Sea-Level Rise: Preliminary Results for the U.S. Atlantic Coast National Assessment of Coastal Vulnerability to Sea-Level Rise: Preliminary Results for the U.S. Pacific Coast National Assessment of Coastal Vulnerability to Sea-Level Rise: Preliminary Results for the U.S. Gulf of Mexico Coast Additional Information: National Assessment of Coastal Vulnerability to Sea-Level Rise Relative Coastal Vulnerability Assessment of National Park Units to Sea-Level Rise Climate Change Science Program Coastal States Organization The Nature Conservancy

Speaker Biographies

Kameran Onley

Kameran L. Onley is the Assistant Deputy Secretary at the Department of the Interior (DOI), and has recently assumed the responsibilities of the Assistant Secretary for Water and Science. Additionally, she serves as the principal advisor to the Secretary and Deputy Secretary on environmental policy issues, Chair of the South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Task Force, and principal DOI member of the Interagency Committee on Ocean Science and Resource Management Integration. Prior to joining DOI, Kameran served as the Associate Director for Environmental Policy at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. She also led the Interagency Ocean Policy Group in the development of the President’s “U.S. Ocean Action Plan” and served as a co-chair of the Subcommittee on Integrated Management of Ocean Resources. Kameran received her B.A. degree from Seattle University in economics with a minor in biology, and an M.S. degree in agricultural economics from Clemson University.

Rob Thieler

E. Robert Thieler is a research geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. Rob conducts research on the geologic framework and dynamics of the coastal zone. This includes understanding relationships between geology, sediment transport, and coastal erosion. He developed a widely used GIS software package for measuring shoreline change and worked with several State agencies to develop long-term shoreline change data for coastal management. Rob has completed preliminary assessments of coastal vulnerability to sea-level rise at the national scale and for 23 National Park Service units worldwide. He is also a lead author of a U.S. Climate Change Science Program report on sea-level rise and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Coastal Research. Rob received his M.S. degree in environmental science and Ph.D. in geology from Duke University.

Dave Carter

David B. Carter has been the Coastal Program Manager for the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control since 1991. Prior to this position, Dave served as a Fish & Wildlife Manager for the Delaware Division of Fish & Wildlife. Dave has been involved with coastal hazards work, wetlands and habitat management and restoration, and land use planning at the State and local level throughout his career. Dave is currently overseeing a program to develop a statewide Sea Level Adaptation Plan for Delaware. He is also Co-Chair of the Coastal States Organization Climate Change Workgroup, where he is helping to develop a national policy on climate change adaptation and improve the delivery of Federal climate change data and technical resources to the local level. Dave received his B.S. degree in biology and is currently working on an M.A. degree in urban affairs and public policy from the University of Delaware.

Margaret Davidson

Margaret A. Davidson has served since 1996 as the Director of NOAA’s Coastal Services Center. This center is a national enterprise established to accelerate access to the science and technology capabilities of NOAA and its partners to improve coastal and ocean resource management as practiced at State and local levels. From August 2000 to October 2002, Margaret also served as the Acting Assistant Administrator of Ocean Services and Coastal Zone Management for NOAA. Before coming to NOAA, Margaret served for 16 years with the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, 13 as the Executive Director. She began her coastal career as an Assistant Attorney General and Special Counsel for the Louisiana Department of Justice. Margaret holds a Master of Marine Affairs degree from the University of Rhode Island and a J.D. degree from Louisiana State University.

For information on the USGS Climate Change Science briefing series, please call 703-648-4455.