Mark your calendars for Thursday, May 25th at 5:30pm for this fascinating program featuring Bob Lindmeier, WKOW’s Senior Chief Meteorologist and Ben Zuckerberg, a professor in U.W. Madison’s Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology. Join us at the beautiful Dane County Humane Society to learn about how climate change is impacting Wisconsin’s weather, environment and our wildlife. You’ll also get to see the site for DCHS’s new project, a solar flight pen, designed to incorporate CSF’s solar canopy.
With lots of local examples, relevant to the environment we see every day, this is a program you won’t want to miss. There will be time for questions and conversation, along with light refreshments. This event is completely free and open to the public.
PLEASE NOTE: This event will be held at the Dane County Humane Society. 5132 Voges Road, Madison, WI.
Program Details:
Bob Lindmeier
Bob’s presentation on climate change begins with the science. He looks at how climate scientists have determined that we are in a climate crisis. Bob will look at how the warming climate has supercharged our atmosphere which has resulted in more frequent and more intense extreme weather events. Next, he will discuss the consequences from climate change that we’re experiencing now, with an emphasis on how the climate has changed locally and the problems that these changes are causing in our lives. Bob will show projections of how much more the climate will change through the end of the century if we continue to burn fossil fuels at the rate we are now. The projections will show how urgent it is to transition to renewable energy quickly, otherwise our children and grandchildren will live their adult lives in a climate much different (and much worse) than the one we have lived. Finally, Bob will look at solutions, including ways to reduce your carbon footprint and the absolute need to put a price on carbon with bills now in congress. The solution is there, the question is do we have the political will to enact these changes?
Ben Zuckerberg
The evidence that wildlife populations are responding to modern climate change is now overwhelming. There is strong scientific consensus that environmental tipping points are being crossed and many species are adapting — or failing to adapt — to a rapidly changing climate. Ultimately, species have three options in their response to climate change: move, adapt, or face extinction. In Wisconsin, modern climate change has far-reaching consequences, but the consequences of these changes for wildlife vary widely, with some species benefiting and others unable to move or adapt. To adapt to future climate change, vulnerable wildlife will have to change their behavior, for example to use different foods or migrate earlier, or move to more favorable habitats. This presentation will provide a broad overview of how wildlife populations are being impacted by a changing Wisconsin climate.
Bios:
Bob Lindmeier earned his degree in Meteorology from the University of Wisconsin at Madison and started his career in 1980 at Weather Central, a weather consulting firm based in Madison. He became the Chief Meteorologist at WKOW in 1989, a position he has held ever since. Bob is in his 43rd year at WKOW, now as Senior Chief Meteorologist. In 2019 he was presented with the Wisconsin Silver Circle lifetime achievement award by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Bob believes strongly in climate change education, and has given well over 100 presentations to school, civic, and faith-based groups. He is former Chair of the American Meteorological Society Station Scientist Committee, which encourages broadcast meteorologists to speak out about climate change.
Dr. Benjamin Zuckerberg is a professor in the Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology. He received his doctorate from the State University of New York and served as a research scientist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. His research focuses on how modern climate change affects wildlife populations. Members of his lab often work closely with state and federal natural resource managers to provide guidance on climate change adaptation. He teaches a course on Climate Change Ecology at UW-Madison.
For more information about our other events, go to our Solar Series page.
We want to thank the Dane County Humane Society for partnering with us on this event. To register, please contact Jackie Harrison-Jewell at Director@CouillardSolarFoundation.org, or call 608-473-4215.