Ensuring a
Safe Climate
We need better information and new approaches to manage near-term climate risk, ensure safety, and protect communities.
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Climate Risk
Climate warming is stressing human and natural systems with catastrophic effects that are projected to increase over the next few decades.
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Climate
Intervention
To reduce the worst impacts of climate change, scientists have proposed research on methods to rapidly reduce greenhouse gasses or heat in the atmosphere.
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Human Impact
By 2050, extreme events are projected to result in over 1 billion people displaced, $12.5 trillion in economic losses and $1.1 trillion in extra costs to healthcare systems around the world.
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We are filling a critical gap in the response to climate change.
Our Challenge
Climate change is causing devastating impacts today and threatening the stability of the earth’s natural systems in the future. Reducing the emissions that are the source of warming is imperative, but no level of emissions reduction can counter the warming effects of greenhouse gasses that are already in the atmosphere. This leaves a critical gap in the world’s ability to limit dangerous impacts in the next few decades. To bridge this gap, scientists have proposed studying methods for rapidly reducing greenhouse gases or warming in the atmosphere, or “climate interventions”. Ensuring a safe future requires that we rapidly improve our ability to observe and project the changes in the atmosphere and their effects on natural systems.
Our Mission
SilverLining is dedicated to ensuring that society has the information and options needed to address near-term climate risk to protect people and sustain natural systems for the future. This includes advancing research and innovation to understand and reduce risks from extreme weather and climate conditions and the rigorous evaluation of interventions such as increasing the reflection of sunlight from clouds and particles in the atmosphere. Like a medical foundation, we engage with scientists, policymakers, technologists, and people from all walks of life to help advance research, innovation, and public engagement to reduce suffering and promote safety.
Featured
New Issue Brief with Atlantic Council
This issue brief, authored by the Atlantic Council and SilverLining, examines solar radiation modification (SRM) approaches and research needs, the potential risks and benefits of SRM as a near-term climate intervention, U.S. and international policy options for governance and decision-making, global security issues, and equity considerations.
Initiatives
SilverLining works to advance equitable, science-based governance and open, equitable public-sector research on near-term climate risks and interventions.
The Safe Climate Research Initiative supports collaborative research efforts among leading experts and institutions to advance understanding of, and expand research capabilities for, near-term climate risk and intervention.
Earth Information Programs
SilverLining collaborates with government agencies and industry leaders to bridge the observational gap by collecting critical data to inform climate models and accelerate climate prediction.
SilverLining partners with AWS and others to expand capacity and access for advanced climate research in a program that includes the first-ever full production climate model simulations on the cloud.
SilverLining promotes investments in critical areas of climate research and innovation and the foundations of science-based decision-making to address near-term climate risk.
SilverLining promotes a national research effort in near-term climate risks and interventions to support scientific assessment of climate interventions and projected warming.
SilverLining promotes expanded dialogue, scientific cooperation, and mechanisms for democratic, science-based international decision-making on responses to near-term climate warming.
SilverLining engages with diverse global stakeholders and collaborates with legal and ethics experts on approaches to just decision-making and effective governance on near-term climate risk and intervention.
SilverLining supports youth leaders and promotes intergenerational dialogue to help put young people at the forefront of future developments in climate intervention research and policy.
SilverLining promotes efforts to expand financial and technological capacity for Global South climate researchers to study the impacts of climate change and intervention on their regions to enable informed participation in global decision-making.
SilverLining engages dialogue with stakeholders from around the world and engages with law and ethics experts on approaches to just decision-making and effective governance on near-term climate risk and intervention.
Recent Publications and Media
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Issue Brief with Atlantic Council: Accelerating Climate Intervention Research to Improve Climate Security
Issue Brief, Oct. 2024
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NYU Langone Health Forms New Partnership to Minimize Deaths from Extreme Heat Amid Rising Global Temperatures
Press Release, Sept. 2024
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On World Ozone Day, there is HOPE: A new platform for observing the stratosphere
SilverLining Insights, Sept. 2024
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SilverLining Announces $20.5 Million in Funding to Advance its Governance and Equity Initiatives on Near-Term Climate Risk and Climate Intervention
SilverLining Press Release, May 2024
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The Washington Post: We’ve been accidentally cooling the planet — and it’s about to stop
News Article, Jun. 2024
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Sarah Doherty: How aerosols brighten clouds — and cool the planet
TED Talk, Apr. 2024
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Aspen Ideas Festival: Sci-Fi or Reality? Talking Tomorrow’s Climate Tech
Video, Jun. 2024
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CNN Opinion: Amid deadly heat, why is critical climate research being halted?
News Article, Jun. 2024
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NYTimes: Warming Is Getting Worse. So They Just Tested a Way to Deflect the Sun.
News Article, Apr. 2024
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New York Times: The New Space Race is Causing New Pollution Problems
News Article, Jan. 2024
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Experts Underestimate How Fast Earth is Warming, Top Climate Scientist says in New Study
News Article, Nov. 2023
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The Hill: In the climate red zone, the US and EU are considering urgent interventions
News Article, Jul. 2023
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Climactic Change: “Cooling credits” are not a viable climate solution
Publication, Jul. 2023
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White House: Congressionally-Mandated Report on SRM
Report, Jun. 2023
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TED Talk: Emergency medicine for our climate fever
Video, Aug. 2019
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SilverLining @ COP26: Ricardo Pineda Guzman on Climate Intervention Research
Video Short, Dec. 2021
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SilverLining Report: Near-term Climate Risk & Intervention: a Roadmap for Research & International Cooperation
Report, Feb. 2023
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Climate Intervention Research may be Critical to a Just and Safe Society
Insights, Sept. 2020
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One Atmosphere: an Independent Expert Review on Solar Radiation Modification Research and Deployment
United Nations Environment Programme Report, Feb. 2023
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Volts: How to think about Solar Radiation Management
Podcast, Feb. 2023
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World Economic Forum: Climate intervention: an option for Global South to reduce near-term climate risk?
News Article, Nov. 2022
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AGU Films: University of Washington Marine Cloud Brightening Project
Video, Dec. 2021
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NYT: As Climate Disasters Pile Up, a Radical Proposal Gains Traction
News Article, Oct. 2020
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BBC: Climate change: IPCC report is 'code red for humanity'
News Article, Aug. 2021
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SilverLining Report: Ensuring a safe climate
Report, Feb. 2019
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C2ES Paper: Solar Climate Intervention: Options for international assessment and decision-making
Publication, Jul. 2020
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SilverLining White Paper: Climate Intervention: The case for research
Publication, Oct. 2020
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SilverLining @ COP26: An Intergenerational Dialogue on Research in Climate Interventions
Video, Nov. 2022
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AWS On Air ft. Advancing Climate Research with AI
Video, Jun. 2022
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80,000 Hours: Kelly Wanser on Whether to Intervene Directly in Climate
Podcast, Mar. 2021
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Seattle Times: UW studies a drastic way to cool a warming planet — cloud ‘brightening’
News Article, Apr. 2024
Catastrophic Near-Term Risks
Climate warming has reached a dangerous level in which natural systems are approaching thresholds for major changes (“tipping points”) that would dramatically accelerate climate impacts.
Collapse of major ice sheets, forests or permafrost regions could move climate change beyond society’s ability to respond. We do not yet have early warning systems or “emergency medicine” to reduce the risk of these events in the next few decades.
Funders and Strategic Partners
Help with critical efforts on climate change.
To ensure a safe climate for the future, SilverLining works to rapidly advance understanding of near-term climate risks and interventions. We need your help.
To connect with us regarding a grant or donation, email development (at) silverlining.ngo
To mail a gift, send checks to: SilverLining, 500 N Capitol St. NW, Suite 210, Washington, DC 20001
“The things Americans value most are at risk”
National Climate Assessment
“The removal of air pollution, either through air quality measures or because combustion processes are phased out to get rid of CO2, will result in an increase in the resulting rate of warming”
Joeri Rogelj
Director of Research, Grantham Institute, Imperial College London
“It will be necessary to take temporary corrective measures almost surely including temporary purposeful use of aerosols to avoid catastrophic implications.”
Jim Hansen
Climate scientist and activist
“All too frequently, solar climate intervention is discussed among those who will not live to see the worst impacts of climate change… We must move forward on research and dialogue with a sense of urgency.”
Youth Call to Action on Solar Climate Intervention
“When nations such as Pakistan undergo the kind of profound shock they’ve just gone through, when small island nations in the Caribbean every year worry about in 12 hours losing a third or more of their GDP ... you have created an economically impossible scenario.”
Achim Steiner
Administrator of the UN Development Programme
“We are in a life-or-death struggle for our own safety today and our survival tomorrow.”
-U.N. Secretary- General Antonio Guterres
“It will be necessary to take temporary corrective measures almost surely including temporary purposeful use of aerosols to avoid catastrophic implications.”
Climate scientist and activist Jim Hansen
“All too frequently, solar climate intervention is discussed among those who will not live to see the worst impacts of climate change… We must move forward on research and dialogue on this topic with a sense of urgency.”
Youth Call to Action on Solar Climate Intervention
“The removal of air pollution, either through air quality measures or because combustion processes are phased out to get rid of CO2, will result in an increase in the resulting rate of warming,”
Joeri Rogelj, Director of Research, Grantham Institute, Imperial College London