Safe Climate Research Initiative
Historic weather extremes, natural disasters, and changes such as the growing instability of Antarctic glaciers pose unprecedented risks to human safety, economies, and the stability of natural systems in the next few decades. Reducing the greenhouse gases that cause climate change is essential, but may act too slowly to address escalating near-term risks.
Today, pollution particles in the atmosphere reflect sunlight directly and by changing the properties of clouds, reduce the warming effect of greenhouse gases to a significant but uncertain degree. As climate change grows more dangerous, policymakers and other stakeholders around the world have begun to consider rapidly reducing warming by increasing the reflection of sunlight by dispersing aerosol particles into the atmosphere to achieve a similar effect, a form of rapid intervention in the climate system sometimes called as "solar radiation modification" (SRM).
However, both research and technology innovation are required to fill large gaps in our understanding of the potential effects and risks of a changing atmosphere and to inform policymakers and the public about potential "emergency medicine" for climate.
Society currently lacks sufficient observations, models and scientific understanding to monitor and evaluate the potential impacts of aerosols from pollution or proposed climate interventions on the atmosphere, climate, and environment. Expanding open science and information is critical to safety, security and governance for SRM and to the ability of people around the world to evaluate the potential effects and risks of future climate responses for themselves.
Read coverage of our launch in the New York Times and the press release on our 2021/2022 award recipients. For background on near-term climate risk and intervention, read our report Ensuring a Safe Climate. To learn more about the research and research investments, read our report, Near-term Climate Risk and Intervention and explore our Digital Roadmap for Research.
Advancing Research on Near-term Climate Risk and Intervention
Research Publications
Our Approach
SilverLining’s Safe Climate Research Initiative (SCRI) is a collaborative effort among leading researchers and research centers of excellence in the US and internationally to define forward paths (roadmaps) for research, and create and support interdisciplinary applied research programs to advance understanding and progress in time enough to matter — within 5 years.
To do this, SCRI develops and leads interdisciplinary research and innovation programs that bring together experts from centers of excellence and other institutions around the globe in sustained efforts designed to deliver against ambitious milestones. Critically, these programs bridge across deep science and advanced technology with leading climate and atmospheric scientists working in close collaboration with researchers from advanced technology centers such as SRI (formerly PARC), UCF Siemens Laboratory, and Amazon Web Services.
In a model similar to drug development, SCRI programs interface closely with SilverLIning’s policy and engagement initiatives, helping advance public trust, public sector funding, regulatory and governance capacity, and global cooperation, including society’s ability to detect and respond to large-scale interventions in the climate system that could be undertaken independently in coming years.
SCRI research programs emphasize the integration and growth of research in public institutions and facilities for international scientific cooperation and data sharing. To that end, SCRI fosters grantee, partner and advisory relationships with national laboratories, government agencies and intergovernmental bodies including the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the US National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), the UK Met Office and World Meteorological Organization.
SCRI programs are also highly interfaced with SilverLining’s engagement programs and include science and innovation programs to expand technology capacity in the Global South, and direct engagement with youth, indigenous and global south stakeholders.
Near-term Climate Risk and Intervention: A Roadmap for Research and Innovation
While reducing emissions is crucial, the continued risks of a warming climate now demand concerted efforts to improve understanding of near-term climate risks and proposed approaches to reducing warming directly. Our interactive roadmap charts a path to improving society’s information and options for near-term climate response in time enough to matter.
Our Track Record
Since 2021, SCRI has made over $7 million in grants, and directed an additional $15 million in funding, supporting over 70 researchers worldwide in the US, Canada, UK, Europe, Africa and elsewhere. SCRI awardees and collaborators include leading researchers from national climate centers, UK Met Office and the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), atmospheric science centers of excellence, the University of Washington and Colorado State University, and climate systems and impacts studies centers including Rutgers University, Cornell University, University of Cape Town, Desert Research Institute and a number of global South institutions through our support for the DEGREES Initiative.
A catalyst for SRM science, the SCRI has
generated over 40 peer-reviewed publications
developed new climate and atmospheric process model capabilities in several major global climate models
provided groundbreaking simulations and data-sets for research on the impacts of SRM
Fostered a new talent pipeline of early-career researchers, support for early-career and Global South researchers’ presentations at conferences and meetings.
SCRI has also produced important innovation delivering transformative capabilities to accelerate and expand research including
the first high-fidelity ‘realistic’ simulations of SRM against near-term climate change (ARISE) climate model simulations
first-ever implementation of full-production climate model simulations on the commercial cloud (Cloud for Climate)
the first aerosol generation technologies to support research for both marine cloud brightening and stratospheric aerosol intervention
a new balloon platform for expanding access to stratospheric observations
a pilot instrument package for scaling observations of greenhouse gases and aerosols in the marine atmosphere
Importantly, SCRI programs have generated substantial science and information on research requirements that has informed official reports, policy processes and dialogues, notably the 2022 UN Ozone Assessment, UN Environment Programme: One Atmophere and the recent US government report on SRM research.
Assessing Impacts and Responses of Climate Intervention on the Earth Systems (ARISE)
The Assessing Impacts and Responses of Climate Intervention on the Earth Systems (ARISE) Program is a collaboration among senior climate model developers and climate impacts researchers to define, develop, and deliver high-fidelity (representing, in detail, relevant systems and processes) simulations of scenarios for near-term climate change and SRM interventions. The effort began in 2020 with the first-ever high-fidelity climate model simulations of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (SAI) under median scenarios for climate change using two major climate models—the National Center for Atmospheric Research’s Community Earth System Model (CESM) and the UK MET Office UK Earth System Model (UKESM). These simulations produced an unprecedented and highly comprehensive dataset for studying the influence of SAI on climate and natural systems - now widely adopted by researchers.
“Climate change is worsening around the world, with devastating impacts on people and ecosystems. Recent record floods and heat waves indicate rising risks. Warming is projected to increase for several decades, placing the lives and welfare of people around the world at risk, and we do not have what we need to protect society in the coming decades. The Safe Climate Research Initiative supports researchers from around the world in efforts to fill critical gaps in the information we need to help protect people and natural systems in an increasingly unsafe climate.”
Kelly Wanser
Executive Director of SilverLining
Learn More about the SCRI Research Projects
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Climate Tipping Points and the Near-Term Future
Video [11 mins] , June 2020
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Marine Cloud Brightening Project Scientific Research
Video [11 mins], June 2020
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Marine Cloud Brightening Project Aerosol Technology
Video [10 mins], June 2020
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Rutgers Impact Studies of Climate Intervention Program
Video [7 mins], June 2020
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Climate Engineering Assessment Across Uncertainties
Video [6 mins], June 2020
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Climate and Global Dynamics (GCD) Laboratory Solar Climate Intervention Modeling
Video [10 mins], June 2020
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Developing Country Impacts Modeling Analysis for SRM (DECIMALS)
Video [4 mins], June 2020
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AWS On Air: Advancing Climate Research with Artificial Intelligence
Video [26 mins], July 2022
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Bending the Climate Risk Curve with Sunlight Reflection
Video [11 mins], June 2020
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Sunlight Reflection Briefing Summary & Highlights
Video [53 mins], June 2020
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ARISE Dataset Release Celebration at the 28th CESM Workshop
Video [68 mins], June 2023
Our Collaborators
Colorado State University’s Department of Atmospheric Science is among the top programs of its kind, focusing on graduate education, cutting-edge research, and public service. Its diverse areas of research include cloud microphysics, severe storms and mesoscale meteorology, atmospheric chemistry and air quality, radiation and remote sensing, climate and atmosphere-ocean dynamics, data assimilation and machine learning, and global biogeochemical cycles and ecosystems.
Rapid Response Volcano Observations
The recent eruption of the Hunga volcano in Tonga was a rare volcanic event in which material was projected high into the atmosphere in a way that serves as a natural experiment for understanding the primary processes and effects of material released into the upper atmosphere (the stratosphere). Made possible by generous support the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and Schmidt Futures, SilverLining collaborated with senior scientists at NOAA, the University of Houston, the University of Reunion, and elsewhere to mobilize a NOAA-led campaign to make critical observations of the atmosphere. Learn more about the effort.
“[Solar climate intervention] can reduce potential flooding risks and extreme rainfall events for cities that are vulnerable.”
Yuchen Gu, (MSci)
Researcher, University College London, and University of Exeter
“Only 3.8% of global climate change research funding was spent on Africa.”
Chris Lennard
Senior Researcher, University of Cape Town
“There is a general deficit in research funding and technology access in the global south, particularly in the most vulnerable parts of the world.”
Kelly Wanser
Executive Director, SilverLining
“Warming temperatures make adaptation more difficult, with increasing intensity and frequency of extreme events.”
Jim W. Hurrell
Professor and Scott Presidential Chair in Environmental Science and Engineering, Colorado State University
“How can we work together to ensure that young people, in the south, can have equal access to knowledge and information on [climate intervention].”
