If you saw some scary headlines about global warming recently, there is a good chance they came from a preliminary draft of the US government’s third National Climate Assessment.  The NCA is as close as there is to a definitive summary of what scientists tell us about the effects of climate change on the US and its diverse regions.

While the alarming scientific findings of the NCA have grabbed media attention, its unique stakeholder process has often been ignored.  The NCA is not just a product of the scientific ivory tower; it is based on a conversation between scientists and community members across the country. That conversation has included farmers, indigenous people, rural residents, urban planners, resource managers, and many community-based experts and ordinary citizens.

The NCA is playing a significant role in how our society thinks about and responds to climate change.  Unfortunately, so far organized labor has not been a part of that conversation.  Fortunately, the door is still open.  If unions want the concerns of working people to be included in the climate debate, the NCA represents a unique opportunity to raise them.  This briefing paper tells how. Click here to read…