The goal of the Foundation’s climate change science grantmaking is to enable research that provides the scientific foundation for understanding global climate change and its ramifications for mankind.
Global climate change is one of the most pressing issues of our time. The scientific community almost unanimously agrees that human activities—primarily the production of greenhouse gases through the burning of fossil fuels—are the main drivers of global climate change.
Climate change refers to long-term changes in temperature, precipitation, wind patterns, and ocean currents. Their impacts are many: changes in the frequency and strength of extreme weather events like floods, droughts, and heat waves; melting ice caps and rising ocean levels; and oceans that are warming and becoming more acidic. Global climate change can affect our water supplies, agriculture, fisheries, power and transportation systems, as well as our health and safety.