Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making Amanda Farris & Kirsten Lackstrom Carolinas Integrated Sciences & Assessments (CISA) A NOAA RISA Program American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting January 8, 2018

Creating the CoCoRaHS Condition Monitoring Program A pilot project to test a new way of collecting drought impacts information from citizen science volunteers build public awareness of drought impacts advance understanding of the linkages between drought and on-the-ground impacts The Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) Tapping into an existing network of volunteers and resources 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

Condition Monitoring vs. Drought Impacts Reporting Weekly observations help to: Identify early signs of drought Monitor deteriorating conditions Determine when conditions begin to improve Identify any lingering impacts Photos courtesy of CoCoRaHS observer Christopher Lumpp 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

Phase 1 Surveys and Feedback Interviews

Project Timeline Phase 1 Evaluation September 2013 – December 2015 Pilot program launched in the Carolinas 68 CoCoRaHS observers submitted 1,572 reports Evaluation Observer and decision maker feedback informed revisions to the reporting process and improve access the reports. Communications with observers to share who uses the information they provide, and how. 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

An Iterative Process to Guide Program Improvements Observer feedback Knowing how the information is used and by whom is very important to volunteers This information is communicated through monthly newsletter content, observer conference calls, and in a training animation 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

An Iterative Process to Guide Program Improvements The condition monitoring scale bar was created to help with real time “translation” of the information 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

An Iterative Process to Guide Program Improvements Interviews with decision makers identified a need for improved access to view the reports https://www.cocorahs.org/Maps/conditionmonitoring/ 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

An Iterative Process to Guide Program Improvements Interviews with decision makers identified a need for improved access to view the reports https://www.cocorahs.org/Maps/conditionmonitoring/ 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

An Iterative Process to Guide Program Improvements https://www.cocorahs.org/Maps/conditionmonitoring/ 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

An Iterative Process to Guide Program Improvements https://www.cocorahs.org/Maps/conditionmonitoring/ 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

Phase 2 Surveys and Feedback Interviews

Project Timeline Phase 1 Evaluation Phase 2 September 2013 – Dec 2015 Pilot program launched in the Carolinas 68 Carolinas CoCoRaHS observers submitted 1,572 reports Evaluation Observer and decision maker feedback informed revisions to the reporting process and improve access the reports. Communications with observers to share who uses the information they provide, and how. Phase 2 October 2016 – Dec 2017 Condition monitoring launched for all CoCoRaHS observers nationally 19,000+ reports submitted Observers and decision makers provide feedback to support the continuation of a successful national program Project Timeline 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

Who is using the information for drought decision making and how? “Condition monitoring reports are most important for onset and recovery and seasonal transitions. These are the most difficult conditions to convey on the map.” ~ US Drought Monitor author 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

What other types of decisions can be supported by condition monitoring reports? National Weather Service Fire weather forecasts Winter weather warnings Spring frost/freeze warnings Source: Christopher Lumpp Source: NC State University Extension 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

Is subjective data a valuable contribution to drought monitoring? A “convergence of evidence” approach “I think these reports are indirectly validating what we bring in as far as other data. And it gives you another perspective that is sometimes very hard to capture unless you have people, boots on the ground so to speak, talking with a lot of people to get that same kind of perspective.” ~ US Drought Monitor Author “To me, it goes back to the question, is *some* information that is a bit subjective better than *no* information? In my opinion, yes! ~ NC State Climate Office “Although the process can be quite subjective, I rely on the observers to provide the best condition [reports] based on their observations.” ~ National Weather Service 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

For further reading Lackstrom, K., A. Farris, D. Eckhardt, N. Doesken, H. Reges, J. Turner, K.H. Smith, and R. Ward, 2017: CoCoRaHS Observers Contribute to “Condition Monitoring” in the Carolinas: A New Initiative Addresses Needs for Drought Impacts Information. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 98, 2527–2531, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-16-0306.1  01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting

Thank You. Amanda Farris Program Manager Carolinas Integrated Sciences & Assessments (CISA) (803) 777-6875 afarris@sc.edu This work is support by the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Program Office (Grants NA11OAR4310148 and NA16OAR4310163) 01/08/2018 Using Citizen Science to Support Drought Decision Making ~ 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting