Martin Maguire's presentation in the 2nd Workdshop on usability of geographic information, 23rd March 2010 at UCL, London. See details at http://www.virart.nottingham.ac.uk/GI%20Usability/index.html

1. Non-specialists understanding
of climate change images
Martin Maguire, ESRI
Loughborough University
m.c.maguire@lboro.ac.uk
Workshop on usability of geographic information UCL, London 24 March 2010

2. Introduction
 Public understanding of basic climate change issues growing but
there are still areas where knowledge is limited (DfT, 2010).
 Global maps a key part of this communication.
 Important to understand the context in which information received,
for example:
 Helping with home work
 Reading on a train
 Viewing an interactive display
 Based on experiences from an EU
collaborative project (EuroClim)
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3. EuroClim project IST-2000-28766
Glacier Melt Area
Glacier Surface type
Datasets
Sea ice area Sea ice break up date
e.g. sea ice thickness
Sea ice concentration Sea ice extent
Snow Cover Area Snow Surface Wetness.
www.euroclim.net Snow Surface Temp. Days of Snow Cover
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4. Jargon
 Every scientific community has its own technical terms or jargon.
 Terms used in relation to the EU-IST Euroclim project:
 “Cryosphere”
Techniques related to monitoring now cover
 “Solar radiation albedo”
 “Strength of radar backscatter”
 “Passive microwave derived snow covered area”
 Brief descriptions of technical terms required, expressing them in
simple language
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5. EuroClim monitoring areas within the Cryosphere
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6. Glacier Surface area
Glacier surface area
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7. Snow cover
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8. Sea Ice extent and concentration
Year Sea Ice Sea Ice
Extent Concentration
1980 7.8 4.8
1985 6.9 4.2
1990 6.2 4.5
1995 6.1 4.4
2000 6.3 4.3
2002 6.0 4.0
2004 6.1 4.4
Figures in million sq. km
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9. Example of EuroClim product: Growing season length
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10. Time series maps
 Time series maps (often as animations) effective at showing how a
climatic variable or feature will change over time.
 Can show how a region (e.g. the Arctic sea) may experience
reducing sea ice leading to an ice free summer in future years.
 With a dynamic display sometimes hard for the viewer to gain more
than an impression of what is happening.
 Example (Purdue University):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJpj8UUMTaI
 Clearer example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAUf1bRIFxM&feature=channel
 A feature allowing the users to select and plot two or more places on
the globe for comparison over time might be helpful in making the
information clearer.
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11. Colour stereotypes 1
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12. Colour stereotypes 2
Image from NCAR showing projected
temperatures for 2036 as departures
from the average (anomalies)
Image from NCAR showing
temperatures for 1913 as departures
from the average (anomalies)
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13. Understanding the nature and effects of climate change
 Distinction of „climate‟ and „weather‟ +2C Equatorial regions:
desertification and crops fail;
Australia: crops and livestock fail;
 Timescales for change? Northern Europe: warmth improves
crops
+3C Alps: end of ski industry;
 Likely effects on communities, Wildlife: widespread extinctions
across Africa, South America and
different industries, farming, etc. Asia.
(Stern: “Politicians have no idea +4C Northern Europe: suffers
of the impact of climate change”, summer heat waves; Amazon:
rainforests die; Greenland: ice cap
Times, March 13, 2009) melting
+5C Global: Crop failure, billions of
people suffer starvation and drought.
 What will it actually mean in terms that Rising seas threaten many cities
can be understood? Sunday Times, 15.03.09, p9
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14. Innovative maps 1
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15. Innovative maps 2.1
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16. Innovative maps 2.2
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/interactive/2009/oct/22/climate-change-carbon-emissions
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17. Conclusion
 Climate information is a complex subject so is important to
communicate information to the public in a neutral and
straightforward way but without over simplifying it.
 Maps are a good tool for this.
 Can allow non-specialists to absorb and try to interpret climate
change variables and information for themselves.
 Necessary to provide enough background explanation about the
information presented so that people feel confident in taking on
this challenge.
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