The Association of Women in Water, Energy and Environment

Climate Change

Dr. Ann Clarke, Chief of the Environmental Management Division of NASA Ames Research Center, invited her NASA colleague, Dr. Cristina Milesi, Senior Research Scientist, to join her in this discussion about what the science says and what they and NASA are doing about it.

Prior to becoming Division Chief at NASA Ames, Dr. Clarke held several positions in NASA Headquarters including Executive Officer to the NASA Chief Scientist. Prior to coming to NASA, Dr. Clarke was the National Environmental Policy Act coordinator for the Federal Aviation Administration and a policy analyst with the US Department of Agriculture Forest Service. She also has extensive prior experience in regional, state, and county planning. Dr. Clarke earned her doctorate from the Yale University School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and her J.D. from the University of New Mexico. She received the Bronze Medal for Civil Rights from the FAA for her work in raising awareness of Native American's environmental concerns. Over the years, Dr. Clarke has organized and moderated numerous educational seminars and conferences on a wide range of emerging topics in environmental science, policy, and law, many related to aerospace and aviation. Dr. Clarke is a Board Member and Past Chair of the Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources Law Section, Federal Bar Association, and also Past President of its D.C. Chapter.

Cristina Milesi is a senior research scientist with California State University Monterey Bay. She is a member of the Ecological Forecasting Group at NASA Ames Research Center. Her research focuses on the effects of climate and land use change on the carbon and water cycling of human dominated (urban and agriculture) ecosystems. Cristina is a member of the NASA Climate Science Adaptation Investigators team and collaborates with the facilities management team to understand the science and data needs of NASA Ames Research Center to adapt to ongoing climatic changes. She has been a NASA Earth System Science Fellow and a National Research Council Fellow. She received an undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of Trieste, Italy and a PhD in ecosystem modeling and remote sensing from the University of Montana.