Talk Offers Insider's View of Atmospheric Science and Public Policy -- Warren Washington To Give Walter Orr Roberts Distinguished Lecture

BOULDER -- Warren Washington will share anecdotes and insights from his distinguished career and provide some perspective on his experience as an African American in science on Monday, August 10, 1998, at 5:30 p.m. at the Boulder Public Library Auditorium. The public is invited. A renowned climate-change scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), Washington has been a scientific adviser to the Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton administrations.

Washington's talk, "From Slide Rule to Supercomputer: A 30-Year Review of Atmospheric Science and Public Policy," will take listeners from his early days as a young researcher through his current role as adviser to several U.S. presidents and a number of government committees. The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research invited Washington to present its first Walter Orr Roberts Distinguished Lecture. The lecture is named for UCAR's first president.

According to NCAR director Robert Serafin, "Warren Washington is one of the world's preeminent climate researchers. The lecture is an opportunity to honor him for his achievements. It's also an opportunity for young people to meet a great scientist and perhaps be inspired to pursue a career in science themselves."

The lecture will be introduced by Shirley Malcom, head of the Directorate for Education and Human Resources Programs at the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Malcom is also a member of the National Science Board and serves as a member of the President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology.

Washington, who heads NCAR's Climate Change Research Section, is noted for his pioneering role in developing computer models to study global climate. He has made key contributions to international assessments of the role of greenhouse gases in climate change.

Washington currently serves on the Executive Committee of the National Science Board, which advises the executive branch and Congress. He is a fellow and past president of the American Meteorological Society and a fellow and past board member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. His honors include the Le Verrier Medal of the Societe Meteorologique de France; induction into the National Academy of Sciences' Portrait Collection of African Americans in Science, Engineering, and Medicine; and the Exceptional Service Award for Atmospheric Sciences of the U.S. Department of Energy's Biological and Environmental Research Program.

NCAR's primary sponsor is the National Science Foundation. NCAR is managed by UCAR, a consortium of more than 60 universities offering Ph.D.s in atmospheric and related sciences.

Warren M. Washington