Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change

The Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC) is a research center which models and predicts the interaction between climate change and social, economic and environmental changes.^[4] Research combines modelling climate change, its effects and environmental economics.^[5] The CMCC is a foundation based in Italy and mostly funded by the European Union.^[6][7]

CMCC

Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change
Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici
Formation	2005; 20 years ago (2005)
Type	Nonprofit[1]
Legal status	foundation
Purpose	Climate science[2]
Headquarters	Lecce[3]
Website	cmcc.it

History

The CMCC started its operations in 2005.^[8] In 2009 a supercomputer was inaugurated,^{[citation needed]} and by the 2020s machine learning and artificial intelligence were increasingly being used.^[9] In 2015, the center became a foundation. In 2018 a new partnership with Resources for the Future established the RFF-CMCC European Institute on Economics and the Environment (EIEE), based in Milan.^{[citation needed]}

Organization

The CMCC is a foundation with its headquarters in Lecce and local offices in Bologna, Venice, Caserta, Sassari, Viterbo and Milan. The President of CMCC is Dr. Antonio Navarra.^[10] The Operations Director is Laura Panzera. The scientific Director is Giulio Boccaletti.

The CMCC’s research is organized into three institutes that bring together Earth system and social sciences experts from various countries in a multidisciplinary environment.^[11] Collaboration among these institutes facilitates cross-disciplinary work on multiple aspects of climate change, including its social and economic impacts and technological dimensions.

The three research institutes are:

• Institute for Earth System Prediction (IESP)
• Institute for Climate Resilience (ICR)
• European Institute on Economics and the Environment (EIEE)

In addition to its institutes, the CMCC Foundation carries out cross-disciplinary research through several strategic programs:

• Integration of the planetary biogeochemical and industrial carbon cycles
• Predicting socio-economic outcomes in a changing climate
• Global coasts as a new frontier
• Integrating artificial intelligence and machine learning in the modeling chain

CMCC also operates three specialized centers that expand its research capacity, enhance computational resources, and support innovation and training:

• High Performance Computing Center (HPCC)^[12]
• Advanced Digital Innovation Center (ADIC)
• Advanced Training and Education Center (ATEC)^[13]

Co-founders and network

=== Co-founders ===^{[citation needed]}

• Italian National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology
• University of Salento
• Ca' Foscari University of Venice
• University of Sassari
• Tuscia University
• Polytechnic University of Milan
• Resources for the Future
• University of Bologna

CMCC collaborates with many countries, and also hosts the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) National Focal Point for Italy.^[14]

Mission

The mission of the CMCC is "to improve our understanding of the nature and mechanisms of climate variability, its causes and its impacts, with a special emphasis on the Mediterranean area" and its interactions with the global climate. Through the capabilities of its members and associate centres, the CMCC delivers scientific-technical products and technical support to ministries, regions and provinces, and the private sector, in fields such as:

• climate change assessments;
• the protection of the marine environment of the Mediterranean Sea towards a sustainable use of the resources;
• ecology, forestry science, health and economy;
• risk management (natural hazards related to climate, oil spills, coastal eutrophication, water resources, etc.);
• transportation, agriculture, energy and tourism.

Furthermore, through satellite remote sensing, the CMCC also aims to carry out:

• monitoring of eco-environmental resources (water, agriculture, forestry);
• analysis and prevention of the risks due to natural and anthropogenic hazards;
• monitoring of the energy and transportation networks.

International cooperation is an essential activity of the CMCC, which financially supports several international projects, and participates in European projects and works within bilateral agreements between Italy and other countries. Other than operating research coordination/management of international projects led by Italian Ministries, the CMCC also provides scientific support for several multilateral international activities, including the IPCC, UNCCD, UNEP and UNFCCC.^[15]

In 2008–2009 CMCC supported the Italian G8 Presidency with scientific and technical advice, including organization and management of three workshops on climate change related issues. The centre also contributes to knowledge dissemination through specific events (seminars, conferences, congresses or workshops) and educational activities,^[16][17] with the preparation, funding and management of training programs (on a post-doctoral level), such as PhD Schools and Summer and Winter schools.

Research Institutes

The activities of the CMCC are carried out by and clustered into eight different topical Research units:

• ODA Ocean modeling and Data Assimilation
• ECIP Economic analysis of Climate Impacts and Policy Division
• OPA Ocean Predictions and Applications
• IAFES Impacts on Agriculture, Forests, and Natural Ecosystems
• REMHI Regional Models and geo-Hydrological Impacts
• ASC Advanced Scientific Computing
• CSP Climate Simulation and Prediction Division
• SEME Sustainable Earth Modelling Economics