Connecting climate models to community needs

Abstract

Introduction It is increasingly being recognised that there is a need to anticipate future climate change so that we can respond to it with forethought. However, a ‘predict then act’ approach to climate adaptation might not be appropriate because plans that seem optimal under one scenario may be regretted if future conditions are different to what was projected (Johnson, 2021). Climate models have already generated so much information about the potential futures of our planet that climate scientists are now grappling with how to continue storing all the data (Baker et al., 2016). We need to reflect on how such information can inform climate action in ways that are meaningful and not maladaptive, and this requires a conversation about what climate models are, what information they can provide and how to make it ‘usable’ (Dilling and Lemos, 2011) for communities.