Judith Curry

Judith Curry

Credentials

  • Ph.D. Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago (1982)1JUDITH A. CURRY,” CV at the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology. Archived September 7, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/L1srk
  • B.S. Geography, Northern Illinois University (1974)2JUDITH A. CURRY,” CV at the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology. Archived September 7, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/L1srk

Background

Judith A. Curry is an American climatologist and professor emerita of the Georgia Institute of Technology, where she chaired the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences from 2002–2014. She is the president of Climate Forecast Applications Network, a consulting company. 3JUDITH A. CURRY,” CV at the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology. Archived September 7, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/L1srk 4Judith A. Curry. “Statement to the United States Senate Committee on the Budget Hearing on Risky Business: How Climate Change is Changing Insurance Markets,” March 22, 2023. Archived May 12, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/T0h7q

Climate scientists have criticized Judith Curry for her climate outreach in the blogosphere based on assertions not necessarily supported by the evidence.5Joe Romm, “Judith Curry Abandons Science,” Climate Progress, November 11, 2010. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/6KcRz Climate scientists have also criticized Curry’s “uncertainty-focused spiel,” as Sourchwatch has put it, “for containing elementary mistakes and inflammatory assertions unsupported by evidence.”

Judith Curry resigned from her position at Georgia Tech on January 1, 2017,6JC in transition,” Climate Etc. January 3, 2017. Archived January 5, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/38YdM citing the “craziness” of climate science.

Judith Curry and Peter Webster founded Climate Forecast Applications Network in 2006, under Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute VentureLab Program.7Georgia Institute of Technology. “Improving flood predictions in developing nations,” Phys.org, January 9, 2013. Archived May 12, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/wip/fDdKJ

According to materials from Anthem Press, Judith Curry’s 2023 book Climate Uncertainty and Risk: Rethinking Our Response “…helps us rethink the climate change problem, the risks we are facing and our response. It helps us strategize on how we can best engage with our environment and support human well-being while responding to climate change. Climate Uncertainty and Risk provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the climate change debate. It shows how both the climate change problem and its solution have been oversimplified. It explains how understanding the uncertainties helps us to better assess the risks. It describes how uncertainty and disagreement can be part of the decision-making process. It provides a road map formulating pragmatic solutions that can improve our well-being in the 21st century.”

Curry has maintained a website and blog called Climate Etc.8Judith Curry retires, citing ‘craziness’ of climate science,” Climatewire, January 4, 2017. Archived January 5, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/gXDqs She has also participated in a variety of blogs in the climate science denial community, such as Climate Audit,9Search Results for: judith curry,” Climate Audit. Performed September, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/vkSge and the Air Vent. .10Search Results,” The Air Vent. Performed September, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/iwc3y

Fossil Fuel Funding

As reported by DeSmog, in a 2022 deposition Curry said that Climate Forecast Applications Network’s clients included petroleum companies, electric utilities, and natural gas energy traders, and that she charged $400 an hour for her consulting services.

In 2015, Climate Wire reported that “Judith Curry, an atmospheric scientist who is often critical of dominant scientific views of climate change, is is being probed by Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who wants to know Curry’s funding sources. Curry runs a weather-forecasting business that supplies information to oil companies, among others.” 11Gayathri Vaidyanathan. “Political Football over Climate Change Rattles Windows of Ivory Tower,” ClimateWire, March 23, 2015. Archived May 12, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/wip/GdULu

In 2010, Scientific American reporter Michael Lemonick questioned Judith Curry about potential conflicts of interest. She responded:12Michael D. Lemonick. “Climate Heretic: Judith Curry Turns on Her Colleagues,” Scientific American, October 25, 2010. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/BL5R

“I do receive some funding from the fossil fuel industry. My company…does [short-term] hurricane forecasting…for an oil company, since 2007. During this period I have been both a strong advocate for the IPCC, and more recently a critic of the IPCC, there is no correlation of this funding with my public statements.”

Stance on Climate Change

Judith Curry has become well-known since the mid-2000s for taking public stands that align with debunked climate change denial arguments, while not outright rejecting the fact of climate change or that burning fossil fuels contributed to rising temperatures.

In December 2015, Curry wrote on her blog Climate Etc. that her views on climate change were best summarized by her 2015 testimony to Congress on the President’s Climate Action Plan:13About,” Climate Etc. Archived December 9, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/H9xsU 14“Statement to the Committee on Science, Space and Technology of the United States House of Representatives” (PDF), April 15, 2015. Retrieved from JudithCurry.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

“Recent data and research supports the importance of natural climate variability and calls into question the conclusion that humans are the dominant cause of recent climate change…[C]limate models predict much more warming than has been observed in the early 21st century.”

“The Delayer”

In 2010 Climatologist Michael Mann described Judith Curry as among “a new breed of climate change contrarian – the delayer.

“Examples of individuals occupying that niche in the media today are folks like Judith Curry of the Georgia Tech School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, former UC Berkeley astrophysicist Richard Muller, and “skeptical environmentalist” Bjorn Lomborg. Rather than flat-out denying the existence of human-caused climate change, delayers claim to accept the science, but downplay the seriousness of the threat or the need to act. The end result is an assertion that we should delay or resist entirely any efforts to mitigate the climate change threat through a reduction of fossil fuel burning and carbon emissions. Despite claiming to assent to the scientific evidence, delayers tend to downplay the climate change threat by assuming unrealistic, low-end projections of climate change, denying the reality of key climate change effects, and employing lowball estimates of the costs of those impacts. When the cost-benefit analysis of taking action is skewed by a downwardly biased estimate of the cost of inaction, it is far easier to make the Pollyanna-ish argument that technology and the free market will simply solve the problem on their own. It is a backdoor way of saying that we do not need to pursue clean, non-fossil fuel energy sources, which are arguably the only real ways to avoid locking in dangerous climate change.”

Climate “Neo-skepticism”

In an article published in the December 2019 issue of the journal Human Ecology Review, social scientists Brian Petersen, Diana Stuart, and Ryan Gunderson termed Curry’s position “neo-skepticism” because she has mixed acceptance of of climate change facts with elements of climate denial. For instance, Curry agrees that the Earth is warming, but claims that temperatures are rising more slowly than climate models have projected. She accepts that anthropogenic carbon pollution causes warming, but claims that it is uncertain how much warming can be attributed to human-driven causes. She also acknowledges that there is the potential for a catastrophic outcome to the climate crisis, but overstates the uncertainties in climate modeling, citing natural climate variation, and claims that these factors outweigh calls by climate scientists for urgent action.15Brian Petersen, Diana Stuart, and Ryan Gunderson. “Reconceptualizing Climate Change Denial: Ideological Denialism Misdiagnoses Climate Change and Limits Effective Action,” Human Ecology Review, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 117-142, 2019. Archive URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/26964357

Key Quotes

March 29, 2023

In an op-ed for The Australian titled “UN’s climate panic is more politics than science,” Judith Curry described reports from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as “‘bumper sticker’ climate science – making a political statement while using the overall reputation of science to give authority to a politically manufactured consensus.”16Judith Curry. “UN’s climate panic is more politics than science,” The Australian, March 29, 2023. Archived March 28, 2023.

September 21, 2019

Judith Curry told The Australian that a 2019 paper in the journal Nature Communications had done “substantial harm to climate science…there are a spectrum of perspectives, especially at the knowledge frontiers. Trying to silence or delegitimise any of these voices is very bad for science.”17Graham Lloyd. “No place in debate for climate contrarians,” The Australian, September 21, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/qIzvs

The research tracked the academic publications of climate change deniers and expert scientists across research in digital and print media on climate change. In addition to Judith Curry, others on the list included Richard Lindzen, Jennifer Marohasy, Richard Tol, Bjorn Lomborg, Ian Plimer, and Maurice Newman.18Graham Lloyd. “No place in debate for climate contrarians,” The Australian, September 21, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/qIzvs 19Petersen, A.M., Vincent, E.M. & Westerling, A.L. “Discrepancy in scientific authority and media visibility of climate change scientists and contrarians,” Nature Communications Vol. 10, 3502 (2019). Archive URL:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-09959-4

November 2016

Judith Curry blogged that she agreed with then-President-elect Donald Trump’s description of climate change as a “hoax,” and said that the United Nations’ definition of anthropogenic climate change “qualifies as a hoax.20Trumping the Climate,” Climate Etc., November 13, 2016. Archived November 21, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/ikMN6

“[I]n terms of climate hoaxes, perhaps it is NOT Donald Trump’s whose pants are on fire…Trump’s election provided an opportunity for a more rational energy and climate policy.”

November 2015

In an op-ed for Fox News, Curry stated that “the hottest topic in climate research is the observation that global average surface temperature, as well as satellite observations of temperatures in the atmosphere, has shown little or no warming during the 21st century.”21Judith Curry. “Is the government tinkering with global warming data?” Fox News, November 5, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/0xjdt

July 2015

In reference to record-breaking heat waves in Western Europe, and whether they should be blamed on climate change, Judith Curry blogged:

“Does it make more sense to provide air conditioning or to limit CO2 emissions.  I vote for more air conditioning in these susceptible regions.”22Judith Curry. “Heat waves: exacerbated by global warming?” Climate Etc. July 2, 2015. Archived July 8, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/JcctB

September 2014

Marc Morano blogged on Climate Depot that in a speech at the National Press Club, Judith Curry made several arguments against climate action policies and treaties:23Climatologist Dr. Judith Curry warns of decades of possible global cooling: Suggests the ‘current cool phase will continue until the 2030s’,” Climate Depot, September 16, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/McIqg

“The main problem is we are putting the policy cart before the scientific horse.

[…]

“Relying on global international treaty to solve the problem – which I do not think would really solve the problem even if it was implemented – is politically unviable and economically unviable.

[…]

“Even on the timescale of decade or two, we could end up be very surprised on how the climate plays out and it might not be getting warmer like the UN IPCC says. We don’t know what’s going to happen. All other things being equal – yes – more carbon dioxide means warmer, but all other things are never equal. We just don’t know. I think we are fooling ourselves to think that CO2 control knob really influences climate on these decadal or even century time scales.”

April 19, 2014

In a blog post titled, “In defense of free speech,” Judith Curry wrote:24Judith Curry, “In defense of free speech,” Climate Etc., April 19, 2014. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/4niNh

“I am broadly concerned about the slow death of free speech, but particularly in universities and also with regards to the climate change debate.”

September 18, 2013

The journal CABI Reviews published a paper co-authored by Judith Curry and Peter Webster titled “Climate change: no consensus on consensus.” The papers abstract reads: 25J.A. Curry, P.J. Webster. “Climate change: no consensus on consensus,” CABI Reviews, September 18, 2013. Archive URL: https://doi.org/10.1079/PAVSNNR20138001

“This essay explores the history and consequences of scientific consensus building activities by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on the topic of dangerous anthropogenic climate change. A broad view of consensus is provided in the context of the philosophy of science and the social and psychological issues that contribute to bias. The role of scientific consensus in policy making is discussed. An overview is provided of critiques of the IPCC consensus process. A summary of recommendations is provided aimed at improving the interface between climate science and policy in ways that can support decision making associated with growing implications of ‘messy wickedness’ of the climate change problem.”

October 28, 2012

On her website Climate Etc., Judith Curry blogged that the paper she co-authored with Peter Weber had just been accepted for publication, and provided “a ‘reader’s digest’ version of the main arguments made in this paper,” among them:26Judith Curry. “Climate change: no consensus on consensus,” Climate Etc., October 28, 2012. Archived December 9, 2013. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/BAMrN

“The IPCC consensus findings on attribution have been echoed in position statements made by many scientific organizations. The IPCC consensus is portrayed as nearly total among scientists with expertise and prominence in the field of climate science. The idea of a scientific consensus surrounding climate change attribution has been questioned by a number of people, including scientists and politicians. Much effort has been undertaken by those that support the IPCC consensus to discredit skeptical voices, essentially dismissing them as cranks or at best rebels, or even politically motivated ‘deniers’.

“Students of science are taught to reject ad populam or ‘bandwagon’ appeals, a sentiment is articulated by the motto of the UK Royal Society: ‘nullius in verba’, which is roughly translated as ‘take nobody’s word for it’. How then, and why, have climate scientists come to a scientific consensus about a very complex scientific problem that the consensus-supporting scientists themselves acknowledge has substantial and fundamental uncertainties?”

[…]

“With genuinely well-established scientific theories, ‘consensus’ is not discussed and the concept of consensus is arguably irrelevant. For example, there is no point to discussing a consensus that the Earth orbits the sun, or that the hydrogen molecule has less mass than the nitrogen molecule. While a consensus may arise surrounding a specific scientific hypothesis or theory, the existence of a consensus is not itself the evidence.”

Key Actions

June 2023

Curry published a book titled Climate Uncertainty and Risk: Rethinking Our Response27Judith Curry. “Climate Uncertainty and Risk: in press,” Climate Etc., January 17, 2023. Archived March 25, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/4u3Tj with Anthem Press.28Climate Uncertainty and Risk Rethinking Our Response By Judith Curry,” Anthem Press. Archived March 25, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/8Yq0r

CO2 Coalition member Rupert Darwall reviewed the book at RealClear Energy in October. Darwall quoted Curry from the book: “‘Yes,’ she writes in Climate Uncertainty and Risk, ‘CO2 emissions are a problem and should be reduced, but not as an urgent problem that trumps the need for abundant, reliable, and secure sources of energy for the global population.’ In her book, Curry questions, rethinks, and rejects the three propositions of the UN climate-change paradigm, and she replaces the paradigm with a new one.”29Rupert Darwall. “Book Review: Climate Uncertainty and Risk, By Judith Curry,” RealClear Energy, October 8. 2023. Archived March 25, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/JwGo5

Darwall concluded: “Climate Uncertainty and Risk is more than a book. Curry has produced a single-author counter to the IPCC that offers a radical alternative to the UN paradigm of climate change that could well serve as a manual for a future Republican administration.”30Rupert Darwall. “Book Review: Climate Uncertainty and Risk, By Judith Curry,” RealClear Energy, October 8. 2023. Archived March 25, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/JwGo5

Darwall is a senior fellow with the RealClear Foundation, “a nonprofit affiliate of RealClear Media Group that reports and analyzes public policy and civic issues.”31Rupert Darwall. “The coronavirus pandemic versus the climate emergency,” The Hill, March 29, 2020. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/c596M

The Center for Media and Democracy reported in 2019 that the RealClear Foundation has received millions in dollars from right wing megadonors including over $2.7. million from the secretive DonorsTrust and $1 million from its sister group Donors Capital Fund. Other funders include the Thomas W Smith Foundation and the Sarah Scaife Foundation.32Alex Kotch. “Koch Foundations Increased Media Investments in 2018,” The Center for Media and Democracy’s PR Watch, November 26, 2019. Archived April 6, 2020. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.vn/lpThQ

May 2023

DeSmog reported Judith Curry was initially selected by the state of Montana to speak during a trial challenging the state’s promotion of fossil fuels.33Dana Drugmand. “Montana Is Paying a Climate Denier to Give Expert Testimony in Upcoming Trial,DeSmog, May 15, 2023. 34Dana Drugmand. “Montana Repeals State Energy Policy as Climate Trial Nears,” DeSmog, April 3, 2023.

Curry previously billed the state around $30,000 for a report filed in the case Held v. State of Montana, DeSmog reported.35Dana Drugmand. “Montana Is Paying a Climate Denier to Give Expert Testimony in Upcoming Trial,DeSmog, May 15, 2023.

Judge Kathy Seeley went on to rule wholly in favor of the 16 youth plaintiffs in the case in the First Judicial District Court of Montana, according to the Our Children’s Trust press release.36(Press Release). “Sweeping Constitutional Win for Held v. State of Montana Youth Plaintiffs” (PDF), Our Children’s Trust, August 14, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. At trial, the state excluded testimony from witnesses it had planned to call on, including Curry, DeSmog reported.37Dana Drugmand. “Montana’s Narrow Defense in Youth Climate Trial Was Devoid of Climate Science,” DeSmog, June 20, 2023.

March 22, 2023

Testifying at a Senate Budget Committee hearing on climate change’s impact on insurance markets, Judith Curry said that the “near-term risks from human-caused climate change have been exaggerated and confused by conflating the slow incremental risk from warming with emergency risk associated with extreme weather events that has little if anything to do with warming.”38Judith A. Curry. “STATEMENT TO THE UNITED STATES SENATE COMMITTEE ON THE BUDGET Hearing on Risky Business: How Climate Change is Changing Insurance Markets” (PDF), Senate Committee on the Budget, March 22, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

According to her written testimony, Curry claimed that “referring to climate change as a ‘crisis’ is at odds with professional judgments of climate risk.”39Judith A. Curry. “STATEMENT TO THE UNITED STATES SENATE COMMITTEE ON THE BUDGET Hearing on Risky Business: How Climate Change is Changing Insurance Markets” (PDF), Senate Committee on the Budget, March 22, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Curry also testified that her company, Climate Forecast Applications Network (CFAN), “has 10 clients in the insurance sector, most of which are related to insurance linked securities (ILS) funds and catastrophe bonds.”

“CFAN actively participates in insurance sector conferences and subscribes to numerous newsletters related to ILS, catastrophe bonds and reinsurance,” she testified.

In her financial disclosures, Judith Curry stated that CFAN’s clients included electrical utilities.
“Specifically with regards to CFAN’s energy-related clients: CFAN has clients in the emergency preparedness division of several electric utilities, for which CFAN provides forecasts of hurricanes and severe convective weather to helps them anticipate and minimize the duration of power outages.”40Judith A. Curry. “STATEMENT TO THE UNITED STATES SENATE COMMITTEE ON THE BUDGET Hearing on Risky Business: How Climate Change is Changing Insurance Markets” (PDF), Senate Committee on the Budget, March 22, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

February 25, 2023

Judith Curry appeared via video at the Heartland Institute’s International Conference on Climate Change, on a panel about “Understanding What’s Really Happening to the Climate.” The title of Curry’s presentation was “Global Warming: Why Scientists Disagree.” Ross McKitrick and Richard Lindzen were also on the panel.41“Watch the Whole Conference: ‘The True Crisis: Climate Change or Climate Policy,’ 15th International Conference on Climate Change,” Heartland Institute website. Archived March 4, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/dzAvp

“In many ways this ICCC meeting is wicked science in action,” Curry said. “The next time someone calls you a denier, you can respond with this: ‘Give me a break, I’m a wicked scientist.’”  

2022

As reported by DeSmog, in 2022 deposition Judith Curry gave a deposition in Held v. State of Montana, a lawsuit brought by 16 Montana children against the state for its promotion of fossil fuels. During her deposition, Curry said that clients of her consulting company included petroleum companies, electric utilities, and natural gas energy traders, and she charged $400 an hour for her consulting services. Curry told the lawyer for the youth, Judith Olsen, that she had billed the state of Montana $30,000 for preparing an expert report for submission to the court. As of May 2023, Judith Curry was scheduled to appear as an expert for the state at trial in June 2023.

October 27, 2020

Judith Curry told The New York Times that the Trump administration’s primary goal in appointing David Legates and Ryan Maue to positions at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was to undercut the National Climate Assessment.42Christopher Flavelle and Lisa Friedman. “As Election Nears, Trump Makes a Final Push Against Climate Science,” The New York Times, October 27, 2020. Archived October 27, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/nrsy9

“The real issue at play is the National Climate Assessment,” said Curry. “That’s what the powers that be are trying to influence.”43Christopher Flavelle and Lisa Friedman. “As Election Nears, Trump Makes a Final Push Against Climate Science,” The New York Times, October 27, 2020. Archived October 27, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/nrsy9

September 2020

Appearing in Marc Morano’s 2020 film Climate Hustle 2: Rise of the Climate Monarchy, produced by the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT), Curry questioned the premise of education on climate change, stating:44Climate Hustle 2: Rise of the Climate Monarchy. CFACT/ CDR Communications, Inc., 2020

I don’t see any reason to teach kids about this, other than to… unless you’re trying to brainwash them in some way. You know, get them when they’re young kind of thing.”

September 28, 2020

Speaking with E&E News about the Trump administration’s appointment of David Legates and Ryan Maue to positions at NOAA, Judith Curry said that she had previously declined an offer to work at NOAA.45Scott Waldman. “Trump White House recruited climate science critics to work at NOAA,” E&E News, September 28, 2020. Republished by Science. Archived October 27, 2020. Archive URL:https://archive.vn/BwWg7

“I’m totally uninterested in anything having to do with D.C. and government,” Curry said.46Scott Waldman. “Trump White House recruited climate science critics to work at NOAA,” E&E News, September 28, 2020. Republished by Science. Archived October 27, 2020. Archive URL:https://archive.vn/BwWg7

Curry said that she had received the offer from John Christy, who had also been offered a position, and that “the pitch was I would have new influence on the future direction of the agency.” If Christy had accepted the job, she said, he would “redirect money from the climate modeling project into the weather modeling project.”47Scott Waldman. “Trump White House recruited climate science critics to work at NOAA,” E&E News, September 28, 2020. Republished by Science. Archived October 27, 2020. Archive URL:https://archive.vn/BwWg7

September 2019

The Australian reported that Judith Curry was among those named in a statement released by The Conversation regarding the publication’s ban on comments by climate change deniers. The list was drawn from research published in the journal Nature Communications that tracked the academic publications of climate change deniers and expert scientists across research in digital and print media on climate change. Others named included Richard Lindzen, Jennifer Marohasy, Richard Tol, Bjorn Lomborg, Ian Plimer, and Maurice Newman.48Graham Lloyd. “No place in debate for climate contrarians,” The Australian, September 21, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/qIzvs 49Petersen, A.M., Vincent, E.M. & Westerling, A.L. Discrepancy in scientific authority and media visibility of climate change scientists and contrarians. Nat Commun 10, 3502 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-09959-4

Alex Petersen, the lead author of the study, said that “it’s time to stop giving these people (contrarians) visibility, which can be easily spun into false authority…by tracking the digital traces of specific individuals in vast troves of publicly available media data, we developed methods to hold people and media outlets accountable for their roles in the climate change denialism movement, which has given rise to climate change misinformation at scale.”50Graham Lloyd. “No place in debate for climate contrarians,” The Australian, September 21, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/qIzvs

The Conversation executive director Misha Ketchell told The Australian, “We moderate anything that is a deliberate misinformation and distortion of facts or attempts to misrepresent arguments or community members. We know climate sceptics are very good at derailing constructive conversations, so we’ll remove comments that attempt to hijack threads or to push an agenda or argument irrelevant to the discussion.”51Graham Lloyd. “No place in debate for climate contrarians,” The Australian, September 21, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/qIzvs

August 13, 2019

A paper published in Nature Communications included Judith Curry in its ranking of 386 “climate change contrarians” based on media visibility. The article also ranked bona fide climate scientists and found that deniers had nearly 50% more visibility in the media than mainstream scientists.52Alexander Michael Petersen, Emmanuel M. Vincent, Anthony LeRoy Westerling. “Discrepancy in scientific authority and media visibility of climate change scientists and contrarians,” Nature Communications, August 13, 2019. Archived August 14, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/WC84u. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Curry was ranked fourth among other noted deniers, including Marc Morano, Sen.Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry, Freeman Dyson, Ross McKitrick, Steven Hayward, John Hinderaker, and Roy Spencer.53Alexander Michael Petersen, Emmanuel M. Vincent, Anthony LeRoy Westerling. “Discrepancy in scientific authority and media visibility of climate change scientists and contrarians,” Nature Communications, August 13, 2019. Archived August 14, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/WC84u. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

February 6, 2019

Judith Curry testified alongside Derrick Hollie of Reaching America at a House Committee on Natural Resources hearing on “Climate Change: Impacts and the Need to Act.”54Ben Jervey. “Big Oil Ally Derrick Hollie Dismisses Environmental Justice, Promotes Natural Gas at House Climate Hearing,” DeSmog, February 8, 2019. 55Full Committee Hearing: Climate Change: Impacts and the Need to Act,” Natural Resources CommitteeArchived February 8, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/jsxfL

During her testimony, Curry said:56Climate Change: The Impacts and the Need to Act,” YouTube video uploaded by user “House Natural Resources Committee Democrats,” February 6, 2019. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“Manmade climate change is a theory whose basic mechanism is well understood, but the potential magnitude is highly uncertain. […] Solutions may have surprising unintended consequences that generate new vulnerabilities. In short, the cure could be worse than the disease.

[…]

“Manmade climate change is not an existential threat on the timescale of the 21st century, even in its most alarming incarnation.

[…]

“It’s misguided to assume that current wind and solar technologies are adequate for powering and advanced economy.”

While not identifying specific individuals, Judith Curry testified she had engaged with “industry leaders” on climate policy:57Climate Change: The Impacts and the Need to Act,” YouTube video uploaded by user “House Natural Resources Committee Democrats,” February 6, 2019. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“The industry leaders that I engage with seem hungry for a bipartisan pragmatic approach to climate policy.”

Following her testimony, Curry and Rep. Louie Gohmert R-Texas) exchanged questions and answers:58Climate Change: The Impacts and the Need to Act,” YouTube video uploaded by user “House Natural Resources Committee Democrats,” February 6, 2019. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

Rep. Gohmert: “Dr. Curry, let me ask you very quickly, um, has there ever been any climate change more dramatically than what killed off the dinosaurs?”

Judith Curry: “Well, climate has always varied. Sometimes they’re extreme events that may be getting. No, an asteroid or comet impact or something like that, but the ocean volcanic eruptions, there’s all sorts of many sources of natural variability on all time scales. So when you see the climate changing, you can’t immediately assume that it’s all caused by humans.”

Gohmert: “Do you think we’re causing the polar ice caps on Mars to melt?”

Curry: “No.”

Gohmert: “That’s probably the sun…”

August 14, 2017

Blogging at Climate Etc., Curry claimed that sea level rise was natural and that human activity hadn’t had a significant impact on it:59Judith Curry. “The Blame Game,” Climate Etc., August 14, 2017. Archived September 26, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/pIlnu

Sea level has been overall rising since the last ice age, with some ups and downs. Sea level has been rising for the past 200 years […] Humans are not going to stop sea level rise on the time scale of a few centuries by ceasing emissions of CO2,” Curry wrote.

This quote was featured in a September 2017 “analysis” by the Institute for Energy Research (IER), which used Curry’s blog post as evidence for a supposed lack of human influence on sea level rise.60Scary Sea Level Rise? Check Your Science,” Institute for Energy Research, September 8, 2017. Archived September 26, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/4FAae

“The good news is that sea level rise is much more modest than false prognosticators have led us to believe. Al Gore’s worst case scenario fooled some for a time, but no more,” the IER piece concluded.

“Rather than attempt to shave fractions of an inch off of future sea level rise in the distant future, policymakers should keep fossil fuels affordable, plentiful, and reliable to deal with climate and weather events of all kinds. Free-market adaptation, not a futile crusade to ‘stabilize’ climate, is the obvious choice for a free, prosperous world.”

March 29, 2017

Judith Curry testified at House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology hearing titled “Climate Science: Assumptions, Policy Implications, and the Scientific Method,” chaired by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas). John Christy, Michael Mann, and Roger Pielke, Jr. also testified at the hearing.61Climate Science: Assumptions, Policy Implications, and the Scientific Method,” House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology, March 29, 2017. Archived March 31, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog. 

“I’m mostly concerned about the behavior of other scientists,” Curry stated early in her testimony. “Scientists who demonize their opponents are behaving in a way that’s antithetical to the scientific process. These are the tactics of enforcing a premature theory for political purpose,” she said.62Climate Science: Assumptions, Policy Implications, and the Scientific Method,” House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology, March 29, 2017. Archived March 31, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

The committee’s Republican majority called the hearing to “examine the scientific method and process as it relates to climate change” and “focus on the underlying science that helps inform policy decisions.”63Ben Jervey. “House Science Committee Hearing Pits Three Fringe Climate Deniers Against Mainstream Climate Scientist Michael Mann,” DeSmog, March 29, 2017.

Judith Curry testified that climate scientists were faced by pressure to maintain certain views:

 “There is enormous pressure for climate scientists to conform to the so-called consensus. Owing to these pressures, and the gutter tactics of the academic debate on climate change, I recently resigned my tenured faculty position at Georgia Tech.”

Curry frequently mentioned supposed “uncertainty” surrounding climate science in her testimony.

When asked about funding for Earth observation systems, Curry said she thought the money was “very, very well spent,” but that that funding studies that ” “implicitly assume that climate change is caused by humans and that it’s dangerous” were not useful: 64Climate Science: Assumptions, Policy Implications, and the Scientific Method,” House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology, March 29, 2017. Archived March 31, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“What we need is more fundamental climate dynamics research to understand how the climate system works on decadal to century time scales and use this understanding to develop new structural forms for our climate models.”

During the hearing, Judith Curry responded to being described as on the “fringes” of climate science:65Climate Science: Assumptions, Policy Implications, and the Scientific Method,” House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology, March 29, 2017. Archived March 31, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“I am not out there in the fringes. My main point is that I think there are a lot of uncertainties and that the climate models and the data, et cetera, are not fit for the purpose for drawing highly confident conclusions about what has been causing the recent warming.”

Curry added: “It’s been warming for hundreds of years, and we can’t explain all of that due to human causes.”66Climate Science: Assumptions, Policy Implications, and the Scientific Method,” House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology, March 29, 2017. Archived March 31, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

As DeSmog reported at the time, Michael Mann was the only witness at the hearing representing the vast scientific consensus that humans have caused climate change.67Ben Jervey. “House Science Committee Hearing Pits Three Fringe Climate Deniers Against Mainstream Climate Scientist Michael Mann,” DeSmog, March 29, 2017.

Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.) noted at the outset that “the witness panel does not really represent the vast majority of climate scientists…for a balanced panel we’d need 96 more Dr. Manns.”68Climate Science: Assumptions, Policy Implications, and the Scientific Method,” House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology, March 29, 2017. Archived March 31, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

Michael Mann’s testified that he found Curry’s support for the climate denial views of EPA administrator Scott Pruitt worrying:69Climate Science: Assumptions, Policy Implications, and the Scientific Method,” House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology, March 29, 2017. Archived March 31, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“What is particularly concerning to me is that one of our witnesses here today, Judith Curry, supported [Pruitt’s] statement. She said, I do not find any thing to disagree with in what he said. 

“Which means that she is clearly going against what the U.S. National Academy of Sciences has said—what every academic, scientific organization in the U.S. that has weighed in on the matter has said—and I find that distressing.”

The Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF) published the written testimonies by Judith Curry, John Christy, Michael Mann, and Roger Pielke Jr. online.70CLIMATE SCIENCE: Assumptions, policy implications, and the scientific method” (PDF)Global Warming Policy Foundation (Report 24). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

March 11, 2017

Responding to Scott Pruitt’s statements in a CNBC interview that he “would not agree that [CO2 is] a primary contributor to the global warming that we see,” Judith Curry blogged:71New EPA head Scott Pruitt: You can be pro-growth and…,” CNBC, March 9, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog. 72Judith Curry. “Scott Pruitt’s statement on climate change,“ Climate Etc. March 11, 2017. Archived March 14, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/8lr9v

If I am interpreting Pruitt’s statements correctly, I do not find anything to disagree with in what he said: we don’t know how much of recent warming can be attributed to humans.”

In my opinion, this is correct and is a healthy position for both the science and policy debates,” Curry added.73Judith Curry. “Scott Pruitt’s statement on climate change,“ Climate Etc. March 11, 2017. Archived March 14, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/8lr9v

February 5-10, 2017

Judith Curry was a speaker at the Fourth Santa Fe Conference on Global & Regional Climate Change. According to Curry’s abstract, her speech was titled “Meta-uncertainties in climate sensitivity to CO2” (.docx). Below is her complete abstract:74“Fourth Santa Fe Conference on Global & Regional Climate Change: Confirmed Speakers,” Cvent.com. Archived February 16, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/OpWNT 75Judith Curry. “Meta-uncertainties in climate sensitivity to CO2,”  Retrieved from Cvent.com. Archived .docx on file at DeSmog.

“This talk provides an analysis of 

– The concept of climate sensitivity: is equilibrium sensitivity a useful concept?
– Nonlinearities and tipping points
– Disagreement between climate model estimates of climate sensitivity, and determinations from historical observations (energy balance models)
– Climate sensitivity tradeoffs between CO2 and aerosols
– Confounding factor of multi-decadal and longer modes of internal variability
– Implications of climate sensitivity uncertainty for estimates of the social cost of carbon”

The Fourth Santa Fe Conference was sponsored by the Los Alamos National Laboratory Center for Earth and Space Science, and co-sponsored by the American Meteorological Society.76Fourth Santa Fe Conference on Global & Regional Climate Change,” Cvent.com. Archived February 16, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/cxZpk

It was the fourth in a series of conferences with the stated purpose of bringing together researchers “with varied interpretations of current and past global and regional climate change, to present the latest research results (observations, modeling and analysis), and to provide speaking and listening opportunities to top climate experts and students.” The first conference took place in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 2001. Both the second and the third were in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 2006 and 2011 respectively.77Fourth Santa Fe Conference on Global & Regional Climate Change,” Cvent.com. Archived February 16, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/cxZpk

February 6, 2017

Watts Up With That (WUWT), a blog published by Anthony Watts, reported that Judith Curry had appeared on the Richie Allen show, part of the David Icke network, to speak about the IPCC. The Richie Allen Show’s tagline was “broadcasting the information the mainstream media won’t touch.”78David Icke on 9/11 and lizards in Buckingham Palace theories,” BBC News, May 20, 2016. Archived February 22, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Mj49C  79Larry Hamlin. “Dr. Judith Curry speaks out on climate science’s fatal flaw – the failure to explore and understand uncertainty,” Watts Up With That? February 9, 2017. Archived February 22, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/hIZmO

“There’s all sorts of different kinds of uncertainty,” Curry said during her appearance. “There’s measurement uncertainty, there’s data processing uncertainty, most more significantly there’s uncertainties about things we don’t even know about…my concern about the IPCC is they really take shortcuts in terms of doing the work try to understand and sometimes quantify the uncertainty, and they just use expert judgement.”80Larry Hamlin. “Dr. Judith Curry speaks out on climate science’s fatal flaw – the failure to explore and understand uncertainty,” Watts Up With That? February 9, 2017. Archived February 22, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/hIZmO

Allen asked Curry, “Is this data being produced, and is it being presented to people deliberately in a way to skew it and to convince people that man-made climate change is real?”

“It’s a very complex social contract,” Curry replied. “Between the IPCC scientists and the policymakers. The policymakers are concerned about dangerous climate change, and the IPCC is supposed to quantify the evidence for dangerous climate change. Well, that becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy if, in the process of all that, you’re neglecting to understand natural climate change. So, the way the whole thing has been framed introduces a bias.”81Larry Hamlin. “Dr. Judith Curry speaks out on climate science’s fatal flaw – the failure to explore and understand uncertainty,” Watts Up With That? February 9, 2017. Archived February 22, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/hIZmO

January 25, 2017

Judith Curry filed a “friend of the court” brief in support of the Competitive Enterprise Institute and National Review, the defendants in a libel lawsuit brought by climate scientist Michael Mann.82“Motion for leave to file amicus curiae brief,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, et al.  and National Review, Inc. v. Michael E. Mann. Nos. 14-CV-101 & 14-CV-126. Filed January 25, 1917 to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

“Dr. Mann has transgressed scientific norms and offended First Amendment principles by bringing a defamation claim against Appellants for their pointed criticism of his scientific methodology,” Curry claimed in the brief. “As it relates to this case, Dr. Curry has been critical of Appellee Michael Mann’s
methodological approach to climate science and the conclusions he has reached.”

Mann’s initial complaint against National Review and CEI had highlighted a statement in the National Review that had compared him to a child molester:83Mann Vs. National Review, Inc. et al. Case No. 0008263-12. Superior Court of the District of Columbia Civil Division. October 22, 2012.

“Mann could be said to be the Jerry Sandusky of climate science, except for instead of molesting children, he has molested and tortured data in the service of politicized science that could have dire economic consequences for the nation and planet,” Rand Simberg wrote in National Review article in 2012. 

The lawyer who submitted the brief on Judith Curry’s behalf was R. James Valvo III, who listed his affiliation as “Cause of Action Institute.” Valvo is the chief policy counsel at Americans for Prosperity, a political action committee in the Koch network.

January 19, 2017

Curry authored a report for the Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF) titled “Climate Models for the layman” (PDF). This was her first publication with the GWPF, and occurred shortly after her decision to resign from her academic position at Georgia Tech. Curry argued in the report that climate change models were not reliable and “not fit for the purpose of identifying with high confidence the proportion of the 20th century warming that was human-caused as opposed to natural.”84“CLIMATE MODELS for the layman” (PDF)The Global Warming Policy Foundation. PDF document created January 19, 2017. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 85JC in transition,” Climate Etc. January 3, 2017. Archived January 5, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/38YdM

The GWPF is a UK think tank founded by climate change science denier Nigel Lawson with the stated purpose of combatting “extremely damaging and harmful policies” designed to mitigate climate change.86COPENHAGEN WILL FAIL – AND QUITE RIGHT TOO,” The Global Warming Policy Forum, November 22, 2009. Archived August 17, 2015.

January 2, 2017

Judith Curry was a guest on John Stossel’s show, “Green Tyranny,” alongside Patrick Michaels. The episode was titled, “The Truth About Climate Change.”87The Truth About Climate Change,” YouTube video uploaded by user “John Stossel,” January 2, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog. 

Regarding the overarching agreement among climate scientists that human activities had caused climate change, Curry said that they only agreed on a “narrow slice” of the global warming issue.88The Truth About Climate Change,” YouTube video uploaded by user “John Stossel,” January 2, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog. 

 “Yes, temperatures have been increasing overall for the past several hundred years. And that carbon dioxide does act to warm the planet. But there’s no agreement as to whether warming is dangerous or not,” Curry said.89The Truth About Climate Change,” YouTube video uploaded by user “John Stossel,” January 2, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog. 

November 13, 2016

Judith Curry blogged on “what we can expect” from the Trump administration regarding energy and climate policies. Curry wrote that despite “much angst among the ‘greens’…Trump’s election provided an opportunity for a more rational energy and climate policy.”90Trumping the Climate,” Climate Etc., November 13, 2016. Archived November 21, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/ikMN6

Curry pointed to President Trump’s comments about climate change being a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese, writing that she herself believed that “the UNFCCC definition of ‘climate change’ arguably qualifies as a hoax.”91Trumping the Climate,” Climate Etc., November 13, 2016. Archived November 21, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/ikMN6

“So in terms of climate hoaxes, perhaps it is NOT Donald Trump’s whose pants are on fire,” she wrote.

July 4, 2016

Judith Curry criticized a letter to Congress from 31 science associations advocating policies to combat climate change, describing it as a “climate power play,” reported The Washington Times.92Science groups blasted for crossing line into activism with climate-change letter to Congress,” The Washington Times, July 6, 2016. Archived July 27, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Yjk5b

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) had released the letter on June 28, 2016. A press release introducing the letter described it as a  partnership of 31 leading nonpartisan scientific societies “reaffirming the reality of human-caused climate change, noting that greenhouse gas emissions ‘must be substantially reduced’ to minimize negative impacts on the global economy, natural resources, and human health.”93(Press Release). “Thirty-One Top Scientific Societies Speak with One Voice on Global Climate Change,” AAAS.org, June 28, 2016. Archived July 27, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/p1Wq5 94“Dear Members of Congress” (PDF)AAAS.org, June 28, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

Curry described the letter as a “blatant misuse of scientific authority to advocate for specific socioeconomic policies,” and said professional societies including the AAAS had “damaged public trust in science.”95Science groups blasted for crossing line into activism with climate-change letter to Congress,” The Washington Times, July 6, 2016. Archived July 27, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Yjk5b

They claim the science is settled; in that case, they are no longer needed at the table,” Curry stated on her blog. “If they had written a letter instead that emphasized the complexities and uncertainties of both the problem and the solutions, they might have made a case for their participation in the deliberations.96Judith Curry. “Climate power play by the AAAS et al. Climate Etc. July 4, 2016. Archived July 27, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Bcuum

Instead, by their dogmatic statements about climate change and their policy advocacy, they have become just another group of lobbyists, having ceded the privilege traditionally afforded to dispassionate scientific reasoning to political activists in the scientific professional societies.”

May 2, 2016

Judth Curry was listed among “Key Scientists” appearing in Marc Morano‘s movie, Climate Hustle. The full list included:97“Background on Key Scientists Appearing in Climate Hustle” (PDF), ClimateHustle.org. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

Climate Hustle was released in U.S. theaters on May 2, 2016. Bill Nye described it as  “not in our national interest and the world’s interest.”98‘Climate Hustle’ debuts as skeptics take on global-warming ‘consensus’,” The Washington Times, May 1, 2016. Archived August 26, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/XtLXp

The film was produced by the Committee for Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT) and CDRCommunications. As noted at Desmog’s project, ClimateHustler.org,  CFACT has received funding from ExxonMobil and Chevron, as well as hundreds of thousands of dollars from foundations associated with Richard Mellon ScaifeCFACT has also received at least $7.8 million in “dark money” through DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund.99Background on Climate Hustle Host and Producers,” ClimateHustle.org. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog. 100Homepage, climatehustler.org. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/NB9qn

CDR Communications was behind the 2010 video by the Cornwall Alliance titled Resisting the Green Dragon, which claimed environmentalism was a “false religion” and a “global government” power grab. Chris Rogers of CDR Communications is also chairman of The James Partnership, the umbrella arm that includes the Cornwall Alliance as one of its projects and pays the salary of Calvin Beisner, Cornwall’s founder and spokesperson.101Graham Readfearn. “The Evangelical Christian Climate Deniers Behind Marc Morano’s Climate Hustle Documentary,” Desmog, November 19, 2015.

Climate Hustle initially premiered on December 7, 2015 in Paris, France during the COP21 United Nations annual conference on climate change.102Matthew Kasper, “Climate Hustle, Latest Global Warming Denial Documentary, Set For World Premiere In Paris During COP21,” Republic Report, November 13, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/s7OHs 103Climate Hustle,” SourceWatch, accessed November 14, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/bOG35

See a preview of the film below:

Reporters from Desmog and the Irish Times were denied entrance to the Paris premiere of the film, despite having their RSVPs accepted days earlier.104Graham Readfearn. “The Fakery of the Paris ‘Red Carpet’ Premiere of Marc Morano’s Climate Hustle Film,” Desmog, December 30, 2015.

December 8, 2015

At a hearing of the Senate Subcommittee on Space, Science, and Competitiveness titled “Data or Dogma? Promoting Open Inquiry in the Debate over the Magnitude of Human Impact on Earth’s Climate,” Judith Curry testified that while global temperatures were rising, the bigger question was how much human activities were the cause.105Evan Lehmann. “POLITICS: Cruz rejects climate science as he rises in the polls,” E&E News, December 9, 2015. Archived December 1-, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wnxgV 106Data or Dogma? Promoting Open Inquiry in the Debate over the Magnitude of Human Impact on Earth’s Climate,” U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/9SbTE 107“Statement to the Subcommittee on Space, Science and Competitiveness of the United States Senate” (PDF), U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation, December 8, 2015. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

The hearing, convened by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), focused on “the ongoing debate over climate science, the impact of federal funding on the objectivity of climate research, and the ways in which political pressure can suppress opposing viewpoints in the field of climate science.” 108Evan Lehmann. “POLITICS: Cruz rejects climate science as he rises in the polls,” E&E News, December 9, 2015. Archived December 1-, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wnxgV 109Data or Dogma? Promoting Open Inquiry in the Debate over the Magnitude of Human Impact on Earth’s Climate,” U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/9SbTE

Ars Technica reported that Curry claimed that climate science had fallen victim to “groupthink” after reading the “Climategate” emails between scientists in 2009. As DeSmog has reported, independent investigations have long debunked claims that these scientists had altered data.

“The rest of Curry’s testimony entailed claims that the science of anthropogenic climate change is unsettled, which she has spoken and written about at length over the years,” wrote ArsTecnica reporter Scott K. Johnson. 110Scott K. Johnson. “Senate Science Committee hearing challenges ‘dogma’ of climate science,” Ars Technica, December 9, 2015. Archived December 10, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/X6bHF

Other witnesses listed as appearing at the hearing included John Christy, William Happer, Mark Steyn, and David Titley.

March 2015

InsideClimate News reported that in 2014,  S. Fred Singer emailed several climate deniers, including Judith Curry, regarding how to delegitimize the documentary film “Merchants of Doubt.” The October 2014 email was leaked to journalists before the release of the film.111Katherine Bagley. “Leaked Email Reveals Who’s Who List of Climate Denialists,” InsideClimate News. March 12, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/CVOi5

“Many of those copied on the email thread, such as Singer and communications specialist Steven Milloy, have financial ties to the tobacco, chemical, and oil and gas industries and have worked to defend them since the 1990s,” reported Katherine Bagley.112Katherine Bagley. “Leaked Email Reveals Who’s Who List of Climate Denialists,” InsideClimate News. March 12, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/CVOi5

“Can I sue for damages?” Singer asked in the email. “Can we get an injunction against the documentary?”113Katherine Bagley. “Leaked Email Reveals Who’s Who List of Climate Denialists,” InsideClimate News. March 12, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/CVOi5

DeSmog also covered the story: “Merchants of Doubt Film Debuts, Textbook Denial Attack Campaign Led By Fred Singer Ensues,” and archived a full copy of the Singer email thread (PDF)

Recipients of Singer’s email included:114Katherine Bagley. “Leaked Email Reveals Who’s Who List of Climate Denialists,” InsideClimate News. March 12, 2015. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/CVOi5

September 25, 2014

Judith Curry appeared on a panel at “At the Crossroads; Energy & Climate Policy Summit,” in Houston, a meeting hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation and The Heritage Foundation, with Roy Spencer and Harold Doiron, moderated by Marc Morano. 115Judith Curry. “Speakers,” At the Crossroads; Energy & Climate Policy Summit, Texas Public Policy Foundation, The Heritage Foundation, September 25/26, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/GUScV

Curry’s presentation begins at 13:24 in the video below:

March 9, 2014

In a Climate Etc. blog post titled, “Positioning skeptics,” Judith Curry declared happiness with her decision to write the foreword for Lewis and Krok’s Global Warming Policy Foundation report, after initially “thinking twice about it because she “tries to stay away from organizations with political perspectives on global warming.”116Judith Curry, “Positioning skeptics,” Climate Etc, March 9, 2014. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/cLS4U 117Judith Curry, “Lewis and Krok: Climate less sensititve to CO2 than models suggest,” Climate Etc, March 5, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mGQ6k

January 16, 2014

Judith Curry testified before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works at a hearing titled “Review of the President’s Climate Action Plan.”118Judith Curry. “Statement to the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the United States Senate, Hearing on ‘Review of the President’s Climate Action Plan’” (PDF), January 16, 2014. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

Curry testified that the “evidence reported by the IPCC AR5 weakens the case for human factors dominating climate change in the 20th and early 21st centuries,” as well as that she was “increasingly concerned that both the climate change problem and its solution have been vastly oversimplified.”

January 8, 2014

Curry participated in a “review workshop,” chaired by Steve Koonin, regarding a statement on climate change by the American Physical Society. Ben Santer, a climate researcher at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, later described the exercise as similar to “red-team, blue-team” exercises that Koonin advocated in the future. Santer was a member of the “blue team” in the APS exercise, along with Isaac Held from the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Lab and Bill Collins of the University of California, Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The “red team” members opposing established climate science were Richard Lindzen, John Christy, and Judith Curry.119Scott Waldman. “Trump White House recruited climate science critics to work at NOAA,” E&E News, September 28, 2020. Archived October 27, 2020. Archive URL:https://archive.vn/BwWg7

In 2017, Santer stated in a conversation with climate blogger Peter Sinclair that he did not think that the “red team” had made successful arguments:120Peter Sinclair. “Senior Scientist Cuts Ties to Lawrence Lab in Protest of Climate Denier,Climate Denial Crock of the Week, May 24, 2021. Archived May 17, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/wip/6RMct 121Ben Santer on the Climate Red Team,” YouTube video uploaded by user “greenmanbucket,” October 5, 2020. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“For example, John Christy showed this figure, A not equal to B, and was asked by one of the physicists in the room, well, why? Why, Professor Christy, what’s going on? How do you explain this divergence in warming rates between the models and the observations? What’s going on there? And John Christy shrugged his shoulders and said, Mother Nature’s going to do what Mother Nature’s going to do.”

[…]

“So the red, the red team lost, the red team was not convincing to the members of the American Physical Society. Steve Koonin stepped down as chair of this subcommittee charged with updating the statement. And now he’s calling for the same red team blue team process, even though the process that he presided over did not yield a result that that he liked, that he was comfortable with.”122Ben Santer on the Climate Red Team,” YouTube video uploaded by user “greenmanbucket,” October 5, 2020. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

April 25, 2013

At a hearing of the House Subcommittee on Environment titled “Policy Relevant Climate Issues in Context,” Judith Curry testified that scientists did not understand enough about the climate to make reliable forecasts of rising temperatures due to climate change:123Judith A. Curry. “Hearing on ‘Policy Relevant Climate Issues in Context’” (PDF), U.S, House of Representatives Committee on Space, Science and Technology, Subcommittee on Environment, April 25, 2013. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/kBw4W

“If all other things remain equal, it is clear that adding more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere will warm the planet. However the real difficulty is that nothing remains equal, and reliable prediction of the impact of carbon dioxide on the climate requires that we understand natural climate variability properly. Until we understand natural climate variability better, we cannot reliably infer sensitivity to greenhouse gas forcing or understand its role in influencing extreme weather events.

[…]

“While 20th century climate change is most often explained in terms of external forcing, with natural internal variability providing high frequency ‘noise,’ the role of large multidecadal oscillations is receiving increasing attention.”

October 10, 2007

The Washington Post ran an op-ed by Judith Curry titled, “Cooler Heads and Climate Change,” in response to Bjorn Lomborg‘s opinion piece, “Chill out,” published three days prior. In the op-ed, Curry stated that Lomborg “rightly notes” that climate change skepticism was “no longer focused on whether it the earth is getting warmer (it is) or whether humans are contributing to it (we are). The current debate is about whether warming matters, and whether we can afford to do anything about it.”124Judith Curry, “Cooler Heads and Climate Change,” The Washington Post Opinions, October 10, 2007. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/LNOUr

Curry stated that Lomborg had placed himself directly in the skeptics camp, but noted that “he has some of his facts wrong.” Among them, Lomborg asserted that the Kangerlussuaq Glacier in Greenland was “inconveniently growing.” Curry pointed out that the glacier was not growing, but rather, “simply spilling into the sea,” citing NASA research.125Judith Curry, “Cooler Heads and Climate Change,” The Washington Post Opinions, October 10, 2007. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/LNOUr

In her closing paragraph, Curry stated, “There is no easy solution to [climate change]… but I have yet to see an option that is worse than ignoring the risk of global warming and doing nothing.”126Judith Curry, “Cooler Heads and Climate Change,” The Washington Post Opinions, October 10, 2007. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/LNOUr

2006

Judith Curry and Peter Webster founded Climate Forecast Applications Network, under Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute VentureLab Program.127Georgia Institute of Technology. “Improving flood predictions in developing nations,” Phys.org, January 9, 2013. Archived May 12, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/wip/fDdKJ As reported by DeSmog, in a 2022 deposition Curry said that the company’s clients included petroleum companies, electric utilities, and natural gas energy traders, and that she charged $400 an hour for her consulting services.

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