Nonprofits Work to Fill the Climate Information Gap Left by Trump Cuts
Source: Newsweek
Published Apr 18, 2025 at 10:32 AM EDT | Updated Apr 18, 2025 at 6:00 PM EDT
On Tuesday, climate scientists briefed reporters on the latest monthly global temperature and climate data. They found that March 2025 was tied for the warmest March on record, and that Arctic Sea ice had reached its lowest extent in the 47-years of satellite records. The monthly data fit the grim pattern of warming that had earlier led federal government agencies to conclude that the past two years were the warmest on record.
But there was one important difference about this monthly briefing: government scientists were not conducting it. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced in March that it would no longer conduct the longstanding regular climate briefings. Tuesday's event was hosted by Berkeley Earth, an independent nonprofit research group that has launched a monthly climate briefing to try to carry on NOAA's tradition.
"It is unfortunate that NOAA has stepped back, but we want to make sure someone is doing it," Berkeley Earth Chief Scientist Robert Rohde said during the briefing. "We want to fill some of that gap." While NOAA will continue to publish climate data, the agency said last month, recent deep cuts to NOAA staff prevent it from continuing the monthly briefings. It is unclear at the moment what will become of NOAA," Rhode said.
NOAA, which oversees the National Centers for Environmental Information and National Weather Service, is widely considered to be a world leader in climate science. But cuts ordered by the Trump administration's quasi-governmental Department of Government Efficiency eliminated about 800 staff positions and the administration is preparing an even deeper round of layoffs.
Read more: https://www.newsweek.com/nonprofits-work-fill-climate-information-gap-left-trump-cuts-2061304