PDF Version of this Overview section

The National Assessment Overview and Foundation Reports were produced  by the National Assessment Synthesis Team, an advisory committee chartered under the Federal Advisory Committee Act, and were not subjected to OSTP's Information Quality Act Guidelines. The National Assessment was forwarded to the President and Congress in November 2000 for their consideration.

What is this Assessment?

The National Assessment of the Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change is a landmark in the major ongoing effort to understand what climate change means for the US. Climate science is developing rapidly and scientists are increasingly able to project some changes at the regional scale, identifying regional vulnerabilities, and assessing potential regional impacts. Science increasingly indicates that the Earth's climate has changed in the past and continues to change, and that even greater climate change is very likely in the 21st century. This Assessment has begun a national process of research, analysis, and dialogue about the coming changes in climate, their impacts, and what Americans can do to adapt to an uncertain and continuously changing climate. This Assessment is built on a solid foundation of science conducted as part of the United States Global Change Research Program (USGCRP). 

What is this document and who is the NAST? 

This document is the Assessment Overview, written by the National Assessment Synthesis Team (NAST). The NAST is a committee of experts drawn from governments, universities, industry, and non-governmental organizations. It has been responsible for broad over-sight of the Assessment, with the Federal agencies of the USGCRP. This Overview is based on a longer, referenced "Foundation" report, written by the NAST in cooperation with independent regional and sector assessment teams. These two national-level, peer-reviewed documents synthesize results from studies conducted by regional and sector teams, and from the broader scientific literature.

Why was this Assessment undertaken?

The Assessment was called for by a 1990 law, and has been con-ducted under the USGCRP in response to a request from the President's Science Advisor. The NAST developed the Assessment's plan, which was then approved by the National Science and Technology Council, the cabinet-level body of agencies responsible for scientific research, including global change research, in the US government.