4
Examples of Interdisciplinary Research Priorities and Opportunities

The final day of the workshop focused on discussing examples of interdisciplinary research priorities and opportunities. The morning session began with two speakers presenting on Indigenous Knowledge (IK) and environmental justice perspectives. The afternoon consisted of interactive breakout sessions that provided the opportunity for participants to brainstorm advancements in tipping points, cascading impacts, and interacting risk.

INSIGHTS FROM INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE

Dr. Kyle Whyte, University of Michigan, provided an overview of insights from IK and why it provides a unique perspective on how to consider and address climate tipping points. Whyte, an enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, works extensively with various organizations and initiatives that focus on environmental and climate justice. Whyte defined IK as empirical scientific traditions of different indigenous peoples, which differ from community to community but interact with one another in global dialogues. He acknowledged that multiple definitions of IK exist. IK is a social science, Whyte explained, because of the intersection of humans and ecosystems as part of the cluster of relationships that comprise the Earth system. Whyte described how historically IK has been ignored or even suppressed, but efforts are under way to uplift indigenous scientists and knowledge keepers. Although IK is often considered local knowledge, Whyte described it instead as knowledge that has been denied the opportunity to be in dialogue with people who have the privilege to do science that is global in scope. Whyte emphasized that efforts to advance the role of IK aim not only to use local IK to supplement other existing work, but also to bring IK holders to the table.

Whyte noted that IK can be thought of as a framework that coordinates knowledge about natural processes with approaches to managing and interacting with those processes. He highlighted that a central concept of IK is that a well-coordinated society that can respond to an emergency or a crisis is the product of years or even generations of trust building. Whyte explained that kinship relationships based on high degrees of trust, consent, accountability, reciprocity, and responsibility are critical because they enable people to coordinate and work together, especially in emergency situations. He described IK as focusing on mobilizing societies to deal with change, yet colonialism deliberately dismantled

the kinship qualities in indigenous societies that foster this coordination. As a result, he believes that uplifting IK involves rebuilding these qualities and increasing coordination. Whyte provided an example of how IK can inform the discussion of climate tipping points. He noted that people often use the term hope when they discuss whether the United States will significantly address climate change, but that Native peoples regard hope as an emotion that is invoked once you have already passed a tipping point. He pointed out that from an indigenous perspective, hope is not necessary if action is taken before a tipping point has been tipped, when it is known what needs to be done to manage risks and mobilize people.

Whyte ended his presentation by suggesting that IK has been missing from the discussion of climate change for too long, and that nations, nonprofits, and corporations may not have the ability to summon the levels of coordination needed to avert big crises. He noted that because of the longtime absence of IK in discussions regarding global change, global society may be past the point of being able to possess the necessary political and social relationships to curb climate change.

CASCADING IMPACTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

Dr. Michael Mendez, University of California, Irvine, focused his remarks on several case studies of tipping points oriented around low-income communities of color in the United States. Echoing Dr. Whyte’s remarks, Mendez argued that from an environmental justice perspective, climate impact and climate-exacerbated hazard tipping points have already long passed for communities of color and that the lack of coordinated responses may be driven by the disproportionately underprivileged status of the people affected. Mendez emphasized that climate impacts are not equally distributed among the population—the most socially vulnerable are bearing the brunt of the impacts (Figure 4-1). He noted that these impacts are expected to become more frequent and severe over time, leading to more air and water pollution, severe wildfires, heatwaves, and other hazards. Mendez explained that compounding climate impacts and subsequent heightened disaster exposure in places such as California, Texas, and Florida exacerbate existing disparities. Mendez stressed the urgency and importance of understanding how these events and impacts amplify preexisting inequalities and how to lessen the harms.

Mendez stated that climate events, such as extreme heat in California, tend to compound other hazards and comorbidities. Mendez explained that Latino and indigenous migrant communities, which already experience marginalization, disenfranchisement, and discrimination, endure hyper marginalization when climate and compounding events occur. He cited the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which reported that heat deaths in migrant workers are 20 times greater than those among U.S. civilian workers.¹ He noted that these higher rates are likely the result of heightened vulnerability during harvesting months, which coincides with frequent extreme weather and disaster events such as heat and wildfires.

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¹ See https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5724a1.htm.

Mendez explained that nongovernmental organizations, such as indigenous migrant rights organizations, were originally established to help immigrants maintain labor rights in the face of compounding risks and vulnerability. However, these organizations are now advocating for and assisting with climate and environmental justice issues, he noted, because of insufficient planning and response from federal, state, and local governments for undocumented immigrants. Mendez described how these organizations have been providing assistance and relief to these communities on insufficient budgets, with organizational structures that were never designed with the capacity to address these issues. As a result, Mendez noted, they are often unable to address all the needs of these marginalized communities on their own.

Mendez then described an event convened by organizations that provide monetary, emergency, and health care relief to undocumented immigrant communities impacted by climate change. He explained that the goal for the Undocufund Summit,² held in September 2022, was to ensure that the current lack of coordination and funding around these issues does not continue. He emphasized that even in areas that are considered progressive, such as California, more work is needed to resolve critical issues, such as disaster planning, language issues, justice, and cultural sensitivity. Mendez noted that issues of language were

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² See https://undocufund.org/2022/09/16/the-first-ever-undocufund-summit-hosted-by-805-undocufund-undocufund-and-latino-community-foundation-calling-for-equitable-disaster-relief/.

particularly acute for speakers of indigenous languages, because translations and interpreters are rarely provided. Mendez argued that the lack of available resources may be due not only to social vulnerabilities, but also to political choices to intentionally withhold resources and knowledge from these communities.

He compared the average costs incurred by an attendee to the famed Coachella music festival (~$2,500) to the income of an average farm laborer in the Coachella Valley (annual salary of $18,000) to illustrate the inequities between different demographic groups in the region. Mendez described how housing affordability is a major issue in the region, with many undocumented immigrant laborers living in cars or sleeping on the ground to combat persistent extreme heat at night. He further noted that Southern California is the only place in the United States where heat deaths have been documented in winter, as a result of hot, dry winds. He mentioned the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Sixth Assessment Report (IPCC, 2021), which highlights the role of anthropogenic climate change in intensifying weather temperature extremes that may disproportionately affect communities of color in urban areas because of urban heat islands and increased smog. Mendez highlighted a new project³ in which he is involved that measures the urban heat island effect on majority-Latino schools in Los Angeles and noted that lack of greenery and natural surfaces contributed to extremely high temperatures on playground surfaces. He said that some schools in the project have as little as 3 percent to 4 percent green space on their properties, which intensifies extreme heat effects and increases children’s vulnerability to heat.

Mendez ended his presentation by highlighting the low diversity in persons working in disaster management, which indicates a lack of representation of communities that are hardest hit by climate change impacts. He emphasized a need to engage migrant communities and advocacy groups to better protect these communities and ensure better outcomes.

MODERATED Q&A DISCUSSION WITH EXPERTS

Presentations by Whyte and Mendez were followed by participant questions and discussion. The sections below summarize specific questions asked to each speaker, followed by connecting themes.

Discussion on Indigenous Knowledge

Following his presentation, Whyte was asked to elaborate on the best ways to connect with indigenous people to facilitate co-production of knowledge and work toward positive social tipping points for climate. He noted the importance of spending proper time to build trusting relationships and stressed how rushing co-production runs the risk of violating trust and consent. He emphasized that from an indigenous lens, climate tipping points have already passed and can no longer be averted.

Regarding IK of biodiversity compared to climate change, Whyte suggested that at the international level there is more collaboration and respect for indigenous land stewards

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³ Alliance for a Better Community is a Los Angeles–based Latino/a advocacy nonprofit organization (see https://afabc.org/).

but that this integration does not extend to international cooperative units on climate change. He highlighted that Native advocates who had been working in other areas have added climate to their portfolios but that the visibility of this newer work remains insufficient.

Asked to comment on kinship reciprocity with the nonhuman or more-than-human world, Whyte acknowledged that occasionally scientists are skeptical of this type of kinship relationship. He emphasized that skepticism interferes with a person’s ability to steward their environment and violates the empirical nature of IK. Whyte described differences in kinship relationships between people and nonhuman entities in terms of the ability to communicate. In relationships with humans with whom you share a common language, he noted that having respect for consent is relatively easy to understand, but it is more complex when thinking about impacts on animals or other nonhuman entities.

Discussion on Environmental Justice

During the discussion following his presentation, Mendez elaborated on how activities such as the Undocufund Summit could increase awareness and recognition of issues of civil rights and climate adaptation justice for vulnerable communities. He emphasized that environmental issues are now driving a great deal of migration and that migrants fleeing challenging climate situations in their home countries are themselves the most vulnerable to climate issues in the United States. He explained that the Summit was designed to acknowledge these common themes across immigrant groups and regions and to strategize for more state resources for vulnerable communities to combat disasters such wildfires, flooding, and extreme heat. He noted that some action toward this goal is already under way but that more is needed.

In response to a question from a participant, Mendez suggested that the response of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Environmental Justice Advisory Council Program to the impacts of heatwaves on Latino and indigenous communities in California represented a good starting point. He mentioned that one of the administrators had extensive experience with regional environmental justice organizations and expressed hope that they would be able to upscale lessons from the state level to the national level.

During the discussion, Mendez described needed actions related to energy equity and resilience among highly exposed populations. He said that it was critical to acknowledge and include community experience, as they are quickly developing expertise in disaster resilience due to their exposure and unmet needs. Mendez emphasized that in many places in the United States, extreme events are no longer “unpredictable” and stressed the importance of integrating vulnerable populations and organizations as trusted partners. In particular, he highlighted the need for risk communication and interpretation in Spanish and Indigenous languages.

Asked to comment on the economic impacts of extreme heat in California and how communities can help define state priorities, Mendez highlighted challenges with physical infrastructure but also noted that underserved communities have poor digital infrastructure

to support online and cellular communications. He stressed the importance of these communication mechanisms for getting emergency information, particularly in the context of adjusting power usage to help prevent blackouts during extreme heatwaves. He added that loss of life and poor health have serious economic consequences in terms of lost productivity.

Cross-Cutting Themes

The two discussions following Whyte’s and Mendez’s presentations highlighted a few cross-cutting themes:

1. Community Engagement and Co-Production of Knowledge: Both Whyte and Mendez emphasized the importance of building trust and long-term relationships with indigenous communities and communities of color to facilitate co-production of knowledge related to climate change impacts and adaptation strategies. Whyte stressed that building trust involves respecting indigenous knowledge systems and understanding that meaningful collaboration takes time.
2. Recognition of Systemic Inequities: Both speakers mentioned a focus on acknowledging systemic injustices and disparities, particularly concerning vulnerable communities such as undocumented immigrants and low-income populations. Mendez noted that climate change exacerbates existing inequalities and that addressing these issues requires inclusive and equitable approaches to policymaking and resource allocation, while Whyte emphasized sharing of knowledge.
3. Integration of Environmental and Social Justice Movements: Efforts to address climate change impacts need to be integrated with broader social justice movements, including labor rights advocacy, immigration reform, and educational equity, Mendez highlighted. Both Whyte and Mendez discussed how building intersectional coalitions can amplify the voices of marginalized communities, knowledge, and perspectives, and drive meaningful policy and institutional changes.
4. Cascading Impacts and Multidimensional Risks: Both speakers discussed how the cascading impacts of climate change cause societal disruptions and emphasized that understanding these interconnected risks is fundamental to understanding climate change impacts and to developing comprehensive adaptation and resilience strategies.
5. Language Justice and Cultural Competence: Mendez reiterated that language justice is a critical issue to ensure that emergency information and communication efforts are linguistically accessible to all communities. Both Whyte and Mendez stressed the importance of cultural competence and sensitivity for effective communication around climate impacts and policy implementation.

BREAKOUT GROUP DISCUSSIONS ON INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH TOPICS AND OPPORTUNITIES

During the final afternoon of the workshop, the breakout discussions were framed around three themes:

1. Developing equitable research strategies
2. Developing new research capabilities
3. Strategies to advance transdisciplinary research

All participants, both in-person and virtual, had the opportunity to participate in discussions on all three topics. A rapporteur from each group was assigned to share key themes from their group’s discussion. The recurring themes from these discussions are summarized in the sections below.

Developing Equitable Research Strategies

Dr. Simon Dietz, London School of Economics and Political Science, summarized the recurring themes from breakout group discussions on developing equitable research strategies. He explained that diversity is a complex, multidimensional concept and emphasized the importance of coming to a shared understanding about what kinds of diversity to target. Dietz highlighted discussion on the importance of long-term relationship and trust building, which involves funding and institutional support. He also noted the importance of co-production from the beginning, with equal consideration given to different knowledge types and complementary opportunities for learning across types. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine staff member, Hugh Walpole, echoed that the virtual group discussion followed the theme of bringing in diverse and affected people as participants in research, with a strong group focus on grassroots organizations. He also described interest in integrating technology with indigenous knowledge. Dietz detailed related discussion on the importance of more diverse leadership, including diversity in age, to push for equity and inclusion across different organizational levels. Finally, he highlighted comments about enhancing young researchers’ skills in communicating research and participating in transdisciplinary research.

Developing New Research Capabilities

Dr. Dorothy Merritts, Franklin and Marshall College, summarized the breakout discussion on developing new research capabilities. She explained that the groups considered new computational, experimental, and organizational capabilities that could advance transformation in understanding and predicting tipping points, as well as their cascading impacts and interactive risks. She highlighted that all three groups elevated the importance of communication, including using storylines or evidence-based narratives to foster communication across social and physical disciplines and diverse groups. Other ideas she shared were

the exercises of anticipatory thinking, highlighting how a participant shared that some indigenous cultures think seven generations into the future, and “what-if?” scenarios, which are highly effective for thinking about tipping points. Merritts also highlighted a discussion theme on advances in remote sensing that could be used to gain insights into resilience, such as the potential to track communities during disasters and recovery. She noted discussion about the use of artificial intelligence to inform understanding of social and physical sciences and their interconnectedness. Walpole added that virtual participants discussed big data and the importance of improving modeling, with a particular focus on the need for immediate action to address climate change.

Strategies to Advance Transdisciplinary Research

Dr. Amir AghaKouchak, University of California, Irvine, led discussions on advancing transdisciplinary research. He described how discussions considered how advances across the natural, social, computational, and engineering sciences could be integrated to construct practical understanding. AghaKouchak highlighted that a key discussion theme was community-focused, co-produced, bottom-up research strategies to promote transdisciplinary research in broad, solution-oriented research questions. As an example, he described the American Geophysical Union’s Thriving Earth Exchange, which aims to bring together diverse researchers and disciplines to address solution-oriented challenges. Echoing themes relayed by Merritts in the previous report-back, he noted that many participants expressed interest in artificial intelligence and remote sensing as technologies that can inform science across disciplines and foster collaboration.

He also described participant discussion around increasing the number of practical solutions by bringing experts in governance into interdisciplinary research, considering expert judgment in parallel with technical modeling, fostering receptiveness to indigenous knowledge, and integrating behavioral responses and human dimensions into climate models. He detailed group conversations about framing solutions around urgency and desirable solutions rather than existing circumstances. He closed by highlighting discussion around utilizing interdisciplinary assessment of research to help understand key needs and motivate collaboration. Walpole highlighted that virtual participants discussed accessibility and incentives, including the importance of accessible forums for information and incentives for building multidisciplinary collaboration across disciplinary boundaries.