PROGRAM TITLE:	National Institute for Global Environmental 
Change (NIGEC)
ACTIVITY STREAM:	Processes, Modeling
SCIENCE ELEMENT:	Climate and Hydrologic Systems, Biogeochemical 
Dynamics, Ecological Systems & Dynamics, Human Interactions

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

DESCRIPTION:  NIGEC is a Congressionally mandated Institute that supports 
research through six regional centers at universities and non-profit research 
institutions.  In FY 1995, the research supported will be on the selected 
priorities of DOE's global change research program, particularly research to 
reduce critical scientific uncertainties regarding sources and sinks of energy-
related greenhouse gases, and to improve understanding of possible impacts 
of global climate change on specific regions of the U.S. and potential adaptive 
strategies to mitigate impacts.  Seventy five percent of the NIGEC budget is for 
research on the role of natural sciences in global change, 20 percent for policy-
related research, and 5 percent for education. Global change educational 
activities supported by NIGEC includes workshops, seminars, support of 
graduate students, and development of global change education curricula.  
NIGEC was reviewed for DOE in 1991 by a distinguished panel of global 
change research scientists.  A report of the review panel review is available.  
DOE also reviews all proposals submitted to NIGEC for relevance to the goals 
and objectives of the USGCRP and DOE global change research priorities.   
Products of NIGEC are annual progress reports and peer-reviewed 
publications in the open literature.  

STAKEHOLDERS:  This program addresses all of the DOE global change 
research priorities, including the radiative effects of  clouds water vapor, and 
aerosols, improving models for predicting climate, sources and sinks of CO2 
and methane, and regional impacts of atmospheric and climate change.  The 
DOE Office of Policy, Planning, and Program Evaluation is a primary user of 
research funded through NIGEC.  In addition, results of NIGEC research on 
regional impacts of climate change, including the generation of unique data 
on  the exchange of greenhouse gases between the terrestrial biosphere and 
atmosphere, contribute to the IPCC and to the Office of Energy Research's 
assessment activities on the science of global change and the impacts of global 
climate change.  Potential mitigation and adaptation strategies are also 
examined by NIGEC.

SHORT-TERM POLICY PAYOFFS:  NIGEC research will provide needed 
information for assessing potential impacts of global climate change at 
regional scales, predicting future atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse 
gases, and improving climate models.  The results will have important short-
term payoffs to policymakers and to research planners. 

 PROGRAM CONTACT:  Jerry W. Elwood, DOE, ER-74, Washington, DC 
20585, 301-903-4583