Climate Sense

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oveRnance

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anaGeMent

the joint real-time operational MME forecasts are the

US National Aeronautics and Space Administration,

National Centers for Environmental Prediction,

International Research Institute for Climate and

Society and Center for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere

Studies, Russia’s Hydrometeorological Service and Main

Geophysical Observatory, Korea’s National Institute

of Meteorological Research, Korea Meteorological

Administration and Seoul National University, the

Japan Meteorological Agency, Taiwan’s Central

Weather Bureau, China’s Institute for Atmospheric

Physics and Beijing Climate Center, the Canadian

Meteorological Center and the Australian Bureau of

Meteorology. At present APCC operates the world’s

largest and most extensive operational MME dynamical

seasonal prediction system. The individual model fore-

casts are statistically post-processed to adjust systematic

biases before being combined into an optimized multi-

model ensemble forecast. The resultant 3-month rolling

monthly MME predictions are distributed through the

APCC website 12 times a year in both deterministic and

probabilistic formats.

Capacity building and technology transfer

One of the important missions of APCC is to enhance

the capability of member economies to adapt to climate

extremes in the present and future. To this end, APCC

organizes training workshops for climate prediction and

adaptation techniques, as well as climate applications.

So far, APCC has conducted six training sessions with

more than 30 participants from approximately 15 coun-

tries on topics related to global and regional climate

prediction and adaptation. It also has an active visiting

scientist programme and has hosted 11 scientists from

7 countries. To facilitate information and technology

exchange in the APEC region and regional coopera-

tion toward the development of effective early warning

systems of high impact climate events, APCC and its

predecessor APCN have been organizing annual APEC

Climate Symposium (APCS) meetings since 2001.

The APCS provides a venue for all APCN members to

exchange information on and assess the current status

of climate prediction science, in addition to discuss-

ing ideas on improving climate information services

through collaboration in the APEC region. The sympo-

sia are attended by NHMS and major climate prediction

and research centres in the APEC region. Major achieve-

ments of the annual symposia include the development

of an operational MME system for the APEC region

and the sharing of digital climate prediction informa-

tion with climate prediction and research communities

worldwide.

Besides these activities, APCC has also actively

promoted better use of climate information in affected

sectors throughout the world by facilitating technology

transfer and implementing an open data and informa-

tion policy. The APEC Data Service,

established in

2008, allows registered users to download real-time

climate prediction and monitoring data for theoretical

no political or geographical boundaries, and that in a globalized

economy even local climate disasters have a global impact, it is

even more imperative to secure close cooperation between nations

for exchanging information and expertise with the common goal

of reducing economic loss and human suffering related to extreme

weather and climate. In recognition of this urgent need, in 1999

the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) initiated the devel-

opment of a regional climate network for the Asia-Pacific region,

the APEC Climate Network (APCN), with the participation of all

APEC member economies. APCN is intended as a communication

channel for the exchange of climate information and technology,

with a stated mission to reduce adverse impacts of hydrometeor-

ological disasters and to utilize advanced climate information for

social and economic well-being.

The APCN consists of 21 national

hydrometeorological centres in the APEC region and leading climate

research and prediction centres from around the world.

The APEC Climate Center (APCC), located in Busan, Korea,

supports APCN in its mission to enhance the socioeconomic well-

being of APEC member economies. To this end, it utilizes the latest

science and applies innovative climate prediction technologies by:

• Developing a value added reliable real-time climate prediction

system, using a state of the art multi-model climate forecast

system with model predictions from member economies

• Acting as a centre for climate information with open access for

member economies

• Helping to build capacity in member economies for producing

and using reliable climate products

• Refining methods of utilizing socioeconomic innovation to

mitigate and adapt to climate variations

• Coordinating research toward the development of an APCC

integrated climate-environment socioeconomic system model.

Climate prediction through the multi-model ensemble

APCC aims to produce reliable seasonal predictions for user

communities, based on a well validated multi-model ensemble

system (MME). Currently, APCC-MME uses outputs from opera-

tional-mode global climate models of institutes from eight APEC

member economies. Organizations and institutes participating in

Organizations and institutes participating in the joint real-time

operational MME forecasts

Source: APCC