Climate Change in a Connected World symposium

Noah Diffenbaugh, PhD, studies the climate system, including the processes by which climate change could impact agriculture, water resources and human health. Diffenbaugh has served the scholarly community in a number of roles, including as the inaugural editor-in-chief of the peer-review journal Environmental Research: Climate, and as editor-in-chief of Geophysical Research Letters from 2014-2018. He has also served as a lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and has provided testimony and scientific expertise to federal, state and local officials. Diffenbaugh is an elected fellow of the American Geophysical Union, a recipient of the James R. Holton Award and William Kaula Award from the AGU, and has been recognized as a Kavli Fellow by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

Xiuhtezcatl Martinez is an advocate, leader, activist and hip-hop artist. He has been on the frontlines of the climate and environmental movement since the young age of 6. Recently named TIMES Next 100, Martinez has felt called to change the narrative on what it means to be an activist from an early age. Still a youth, Martinez has spoken multiple times at the UN, addressing the General Assembly and spoken on panels with the likes of Bernie Sanders, Van Jones, Shailene Woodley, Bill McKibben and Pharrell Williams. Martinez has been a guest on the “Daily Show with Trevor Noah” and “Real Time” with Bill Maher. He has also been featured multiple times on PBS, Showtime, National Geographic, Rolling Stone, Upworthy, The Guardian, Vogue, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, CNN, MSNBC, HBO, Netflix, VICE, as well as photographed by Annie Leibovitz. Martinez has a unique talent for connecting people through popular culture and sharing the message of his Indigenous roots to better serve the planet and reimagine the future for his generation.