In Summer 2013, Sam Burlager and Akilah Sanders-Reed received Environmental Studies Summer Research Funds to create a “Primer” on climate change impacts in Saint Paul, Minnesota. They worked with faculty members Roopali Phadke and Christie Manning. They spent eight weeks gathering materials and writing the primer. The materials encompassed scientific sources (peer-reviewed articles, data sets, models and predictions), local historical data, and information gathered through interviews with local experts and public officials. Sam and Akilah also recorded observations and anecdotes of Saint Paul residents as they reflected on how climate change will impact their community.
Sam and Akilah were also mentored and advised by journalists at Minnesota 2020, a local new media think tank. As part of their work with Minnesota 2020, they wrote regular blog entries that were published on the organization’s website.
The Primer is an essential supporting element for our upcoming Summer 2014 “community climate change conversations”.