Microbes and Climate Change – Science, People & Impacts: Report on an American Academy of Microbiology Virtual Colloquium held on November 5, 2021

Excerpt

Climate change is unarguably a critical existential threat to humanity in the 21st century. As the most abundant organisms on Earth, microorganisms make considerable contributions to and are greatly affected by a changing climate. Microbes are major drivers of elemental cycles (such are carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus), important producers and consumers of greenhouse gases, and pertinent pathogens of humans, animals, and plants. While the threat of climate change looms large, conversations about the relationship between it and microorganisms are still rare outside of the microbial sciences community. To understand fully how our climate may change in the future, it is important to learn how a changing climate will impact microbes and their relationships with humans and their environment, as well as incorporate microbial processes into climate models.

This report is based on the deliberations of experts who participated in a colloquium on 5 November 2021 organized by the American Academy of Microbiology, the honorific leadership group and think tank within the American Society for Microbiology. These experts came from diverse disciplines and sectors and provided multifaceted perspectives and insights. Over the course of the discussion, the group made several major recommendations for academic, policy, and market partners to promote innovation for microbe-driven climate change solutions that support human well-being.