Consortium research

Cop15 Copenhagen

cop15logoWOODS HOLE, MA—Directors and scientists from the Woods Hole Consortium are in Copenhagen, Denmark, this week to speak on the impacts of climate change on interlocking ocean, air, land, and polar ice ecosystems—whose fates are inextricably linked—at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 15).

The members of the Woods Hole Consortium are Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL), Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), and Woods Hole Research Center (WHRC).

The Woods Hole Consortium is actively involved in formulating the scientific basis for climate and environmental policy decisions, both in the U.S. and internationally.

Oceans Day

In Copenhagen, two Consortium members will be panelists at Oceans Day on Dec. 14, which will highlight the importance of oceans, coasts, and small-island developing nations in climate change assessments and policy deliberations.

Susan Avery, director and president of WHOI, will present an introductory overview to Ocean Day attendees, who include H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco (delivering the keynote address), and many other heads of state and world leaders.

Also representing the Woods Hole Consortium at Oceans Day are Gary G. Borisy, director and CEO of the MBL, who will speak on the impacts of climate change on marine biodiversity; and Scott Doney, senior scientist at WHOI, who will speak on ocean acidification as a result of CO2 emissions.

REDD Initiative

The Woods Hole Research Center (WHRC) has a very active presence at the COP 15 meeting. The WHRC has been involved in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) process since its inception and continues to engage in multiple facets of the climate change policy discussion; for the last several years the Center has taken a leading role in the development of a potential mechanism for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) under the Convention. Read more about WHRC's involvement in REDD Initiative.