Penn State shares $25M DOE grant to study climate change impacts and adaptation

As stated in the DOE announcement, the goal of the program is to improve climate change predictions for cities, including working with cities to help them create strategies for adapting to and mitigating these changes. The urban cities involved in the studies include diverse demographic characteristics; a range of climate-induced pressures on people and infrastructures; and varied geographic settings. Understanding how climate change will impact urban systems and infrastructure is key to building resilient cities powered by clean energy, helping achieve President Joe Biden’s goal of a net-zero carbon economy by 2050.  

Davis said a key area of strength that Penn State brings to the project is measurement and modeling of the urban atmospheric boundary layer — the portion of the atmosphere closest to the Earth’s surface, which is crucial to the climate and air quality experienced on the planet.

“People live in the atmospheric boundary layer,” said Davis. “Predicting urban heat waves and air pollution episodes in the city requires that we understand how this lower layer of the atmosphere is modified by the city itself, and how it changes from neighborhood to neighborhood. That level of understanding is beyond the reach of today’s climate models. We aim to put it within the reach.” 

Additionally, Penn State reachers’ expertise in the interplay among buildings, climate and human health represents a major contribution to the research effort.  

“Resilient, safe and efficient buildings are key to adapting to the hazards of climate change, and to minimizing our emissions of air pollution and greenhouse gases,” Davis said. 

The Penn State team is composed of faculty from the colleges of Medicine, Arts and Architecture, Earth and Mineral Sciences, Agricultural Sciences, and Engineering; the School of Public Policy; and the School of Science, Engineering, and Technology at Penn State Harrisburg.