Todays Challenge
Global warming is they defining environmental challenge of our time. The need for quality, accessible scientific data about global warming could not be more urgent. Yet there are few independent sources of historic global temperature records, the foundation underlying all global warming analysis.
Our Mission & Purpose
Berkeley Earth empowers global decision-making on climate change by providing transparent, open-source environmental data and unbiased scientific analysis. Our mission is to deliver high-quality, accessible information on global temperature and air pollution to drive action and foster a deeper understanding of humanity’s impact on the planet.
Strategic Goals
Data at the Resolution of Human Experience – High-Resolution Projections
Berkeley Earth is transforming climate data into actionable insights for local communities. Through our high-resolution data set and our forthcoming climate model synthesis project, we aim help local communities better understand and prepare for their climate future, enabling leaders to take proactive steps toward resilience. We aim to empower local stakeholders to protect their environments and futures, ultimately fostering more sustainable and resilient communities.
Innovating Rapid Attribution and Analysis Tools – Tools Local Stakeholders
In an age of increasing climate instability, Berkeley Earth’s forthcoming Local Futures Platform is pioneering tools that enable more rapid analysis of emergent climate events. By combining scientific innovation with an updated daily temperature product, Berkeley Earth is innovating new digital tools for tracking and analyzing extreme events. By contextualizing the entire climate timeline into a single platform, the Local Futures Platform will provide unprecedented insight and understanding of the full context of local climate change.
Building on a Strong Foundation of Climate Science – Maintaining Legacy Products
While we embrace the future, Berkeley Earth remains dedicated to preserving and expanding our historic climate datasets. These foundational surface temperature data sets, referenced by the IPCC and thousands of scientists globally, continue to serve as a critical resource for understanding long-term climate trends, guiding both research and policy.
Open Source Transparency – Open Source
Open, transparent data is the foundational value upon which Berkeley Earth was founded. Berkeley Earth’s commitment to open-source data ensures that climate science is freely available and accessible to all. By providing open access to high-quality climate datasets and fully transparent methodology, our dedication to transparency empowers researchers, policymakers, and communities to use this data to make informed decisions and drive climate action with confidence.
Advancing Science Communication for Global Action – Communications
At Berkeley Earth, we are committed to clear, transparent communication of complex climate science to inspire global action. Through public-facing reports, media outreach, and accessible data, we ensure that climate science reaches a broad audience, from policymakers to the general public. By engaging in meaningful dialogue and disseminating vital information, we bridge the gap between scientific research and real-world impact, driving informed action on climate change at every level.
Our History
2010
The Beginning
Berkeley Earth was founded by Richard and Elizabeth Muller in 2010, sparked by a desire to address some of the concerns raised by climate skeptics. They believed that rigorous, unbiased science could resolve many of the questions surrounding the accuracy of global temperature records.
2011
Addressing Climate Skepticism
Over the next two years, a dedicated team of scientists reanalyzed Earth’s surface temperature data, tackling five major concerns skeptics had raised: data selection, data adjustments, station quality, the urban heatisland effect, and reliance on complex climate models.
Our findings demonstrated that none of these concerns significantly impacted the long-term warming trend in the historic temperature record. Instead, our findings confirmed that the warming trend could be explained by rising CO2 levels as a result of anthropogenic carbon emissions.
2012
Publishing Our Findings & Creating Our Mission
In 2012, we published our initial results, including the full data set and methodology, making them open source and freely accessible. Our commitment to transparency and open access has been central to our mission ever since.
2013
Incorporating the Non-Profit
In 2013 Berkeley Earth became an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, solidifying our commitment to making impartial, open-source climate and air pollution data open and accessible, informing the global discourse on climate change.
Today
Sharing Data and Engaging Stakeholders
We believe that our responsibility goes beyond collecting data-we must communicate our findings with key stakeholders, particularly those who are familiar with global warming skepticism.
By engaging with scientists, policymakers, and the public, we aim to help shape data-driven and informed actions to address the global climate crisis.
Funders
Berkeley Earth is entirely supported through charitable donations. We are deeply grateful for the strong, generous financial support from current and previous donors.
