The conference report is now available.

Couldn’t attend live? Watch America Resilient now

Click the time code to select specific sessions

0:00​ Introduction
0:50​ Welcome and Opening Remarks Paul Kearns, Director, Argonne National Laboratory
6:10​ Keynote Justice40 and Energy Justice: A Transformative Vision for the Department of Energy Shalanda H. Baker, Deputy Director for Energy Justice & Secretary’s Advisor on Equity, U.S. Department of Energy
39:25​ Panel Discussion Equipping Local and Regional Communities to Act: The Path to High-Resolution Climate Models Informing Adaptation Strategies
1:29:15​ Science in Action U.S. Department of Energy National Labs Advancing Actionable Climate Projections
1:57:05​ Keynote U.S. Representative Sean Casten
2:16:26​ Science in Action Climate and Environmental Justice in Urban Communities
2:45:55​ Panel Discussion Improving Resilience: Developing Strategies and Overcoming Barriers to Proactively Adapt to Climate Change Risks
3:36:00​ Science in Action Increasing Infrastructure Adaptation and Resilience to Climate Impacts 3:57:03​ Improving Resilience Adaptation Across America: Local and Regional Perspectives on Climate Resilience
4:49:00​ Keynote with Q&A U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm

Summary

On April 14, 2021, Argonne convened the America Resilient conference to focus on the urgent need for governments, industries, and communities across the nation to plan for and adapt to climate change impacts. These impacts are being felt today through disasters such as floods, hurricanes and wildfires, and will be felt over the long term through the cumulative effects of changing temperatures. Sessions covered three areas key to climate resiliency:

• High-accuracy, high-resolution climate models that project potential climate impacts at the regional and local level
• Data and tools to empower governments and industries to take proactive and effective steps to build resilience
• The path to ensuring that our most vulnerable communities adapt to be resilient against climate change impacts and thrive in the transition to a clean-energy society

More than 20 top experts discussed how the nation is tapping our best scientists and institutions to fight climate change. They provided an overview of the accuracy of current climate impact projections and looked at how that data helps people respond more effectively. Attendees heard about what gets in the way of more rapid advancements in climate research and the barriers communities encounter as they implement solutions to help them prepare for extreme events and long-term threats due to a changing climate. Speakers presented case studies from governments and industries putting science-based resilience solutions to work.

The America Resilient conference agenda included:

• Keynote remarks by U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm, U.S. Representative Sean Casten and U.S. Department of Energy Deputy Director for Energy Justice Shalanda H. Baker
• Panel discussions on high-resolution climate modeling and proactively adapting to climate change risks through resilience
• “Science in Action” segments where applications of research were discussed in the areas of climate modeling, environmental justice, and infrastructure resilience
• An ​“Improving Resilience” section where three officials at the front lines of climate adaptation across the country discussed the actions being taken in their regions in response to climate change 

The conference report was published in July 2021.