The Pacific Research on Island Solutions for Adaptation (Pacific RISA) program is the NOAA Climate Adaptation Partnership (CAP)team for the US Pacific Islands region. The CAP network (formerly known as the Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments, or RISA, network) was created in 1995 to pioneer innovative mechanisms for enhancing the value of climate information and products for understanding and responding to a variety of challenges associated with climate variability and change at the regional scale. Regional teams support sustained, collaborative research relationships that help communities build climate resilience within the context of mainstream social and economic planning.
At the core of the CAP philosophy is the observation that climate variability and change are global phenomena, but impacts primarily manifest at regional scales in issues related to changing water cycles, increasing vulnerability to natural hazards, agricultural disruptions, environmental disturbances, and sea level rise. Often, these climate challenges combine with and exacerbate other stressors, such as population growth, energy development, and transitions in local economies, culture, and social relationships. The types of products and management efforts undertaken by the CAPs vary widely, but share the common feature of emerging from real-world challenges faced by stakeholders.
Lessons from the CAP Experience
The CAP experience provides valuable “lessons learned” that have direct relevance to regional and national climate services:
Building trust requires a sustained effort.
Integrated and interdisciplinary climate information and research is required.
Information must be contextual and relevant.
Proactive engagement is required.
A dynamic and flexible organization is required.
The CAP model of climate services relies on participatory approaches featuring two-way dialogues between researchers and user groups, uses iterative and sustained relationships to build mutual understanding and trust, and is implemented through collaborative, multi-disciplinary and multi-partner teams delineated by decision-relevant contexts shaped by geography, sector, and timing. Additionally, the approach is evolutionary and opportunistic, adapting to the influx of new constituencies, new advances in science and technology, an improved understanding of decision contexts, and responsive to the opportunities associated with climate hazards like droughts and storms, and emerging policy initiatives.
Our Vision
Pacific Island communities that are resilient to climate impacts and using climate information to manage risks.
About Pacific RISA
The Pacific Research on Island Solutions for Adaptation (Pacific RISA) program is the NOAA Climate Adaptation Partnership (CAP) team for the US Pacific Islands region. The CAP network (formerly known as the Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments, or RISA, network) was created in 1995 to pioneer innovative mechanisms for enhancing the value of climate information and products for understanding and responding to a variety of challenges associated with climate variability and change at the regional scale. Regional teams support sustained, collaborative research relationships that help communities build climate resilience within the context of mainstream social and economic planning.
The Core Office of the Pacific RISA program is led by the ASU Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation (GIOSI), in partnership with and located at the East-West Center, and researchers from the University of Hawai‘i International Pacific Research Center (UHIPRC), Sea Grant College Program, Water Resources Research Center (UHWRRC), Natural Resources and Environmental Management (NREM), Sea Level Center (UHSLC), University of Guam (UoG), and with collaborators at the USGS-Pacific Islands Water Science Center.
At the core of the CAP philosophy is the observation that climate variability and change are global phenomena, but impacts primarily manifest at regional scales in issues related to changing water cycles, increasing vulnerability to natural hazards, agricultural disruptions, environmental disturbances, and sea level rise. Often, these climate challenges combine with and exacerbate other stressors, such as population growth, energy development, and transitions in local economies, culture, and social relationships. The types of products and management efforts undertaken by the CAPs vary widely, but share the common feature of emerging from real-world challenges faced by stakeholders.
Lessons from the CAP Experience
The CAP experience provides valuable “lessons learned” that have direct relevance to regional and national climate services:
The CAP model of climate services relies on participatory approaches featuring two-way dialogues between researchers and user groups, uses iterative and sustained relationships to build mutual understanding and trust, and is implemented through collaborative, multi-disciplinary and multi-partner teams delineated by decision-relevant contexts shaped by geography, sector, and timing. Additionally, the approach is evolutionary and opportunistic, adapting to the influx of new constituencies, new advances in science and technology, an improved understanding of decision contexts, and responsive to the opportunities associated with climate hazards like droughts and storms, and emerging policy initiatives.
Our Vision
Pacific Island communities that are resilient to climate impacts and using climate information to manage risks.
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