Climate models predict more extreme weather events for the Upper Midwest. Without increased precautions and investments in infrastructure, more people are expected to be impacted by heat waves, pollution, severe storms, and infectious diseases. These conclusions are detailed in the Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability” section of the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), convened by the United Nations. As one of the lead authors for the analysis of North America, Jonathan Patz has a unique perspective on what climate change means for our health.

In addition to discussing some of the IPCC findings, Patz will discuss preliminary results from an ongoing study in collaboration with climatologists and public health officials from the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services. With funding from the EPA, they are assessing public health threats from projected heat waves and heavy flooding events in the Great Lakes Region.

Patz’s lecture is sponsored by the UW Sea Grant Institute, Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, UW Science Alliance, and the Wisconsin Alumni Association. His lecture is part of the 2007 seminar series “Climate Change in the Great Lakes Region: Starting a Public Discussion,” funded by the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

To learn more!

Climate Change in the Great Lakes Region: Starting a Public Discussion: http://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/climatechange/

Jonathan Patz page: http://www.sage.wisc.edu/people/patz/patz.html

IPCC Working Group II: Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability: http://www.ipcc-wg2.org/

“Third World Bears Brunt of Global Warming Impacts”: http://www.international.wisc.edu/news/newsitems/detail.asp?idEventsNews=879