Who we are, what we do

Our Mission

The New Jersey Climate Change Resource Center was established by statute in January 2020 to “create and support the use of impartial and actionable science to advance government, public, private, and nongovernmental sector efforts to adapt to, and mitigate, a changing climate.” To that end, our mission is to:

• Conduct research with real-world applications to New Jersey’s most pressing climate-related challenges;

• Create planning tools, develop technical guidance, undertake pilot projects, and provide practical support for addressing climate change in New Jersey;

• Connect actionable research to policymakers, planners, practitioners, the media, communities, students, and other individuals through outreach, training, and education.

Acknowledgments

This website draws upon the work of organizations and individuals across Rutgers University and its partners throughout New Jersey and beyond, including:

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion

The values of diversity, equity, and inclusion are essential in the work of the NJ Climate Change Resource Center. We are committed to creating a welcoming and collaborative environment where people of all backgrounds are encouraged to develop their ideas and abilities in the effort to address climate change in New Jersey.

Directors and Leadership Team

The Climate Change Resource Center is overseen by co-Directors Marjorie Kaplan and Lucas Marxen. Leadership Team members Lisa Auermuller, John Gattuso, James Shope, and Vanessa Tropiano, work with the co-Directors providing core development and implementation of the Center’s projects, programs, and initiatives.

Directors

MARJORIE KAPLAN
Senior Associate Director
Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute
Phone: 848-932-5739
Email
Bio

LUCAS MARXEN
Executive Director
Environmental Analysis and Communications Group, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Phone: 848-932-2725
Email
Bio

Leadership Team

LISA AUERMULLER
Administrative Director
CoPe Megalopolitan Coastal Transformation Hub (MACH)
Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences
Email
Bio

JOHN GATTUSO
Communications Manager
Gattuso Media Design
Email
Website

JAMES SHOPE
Applied Climatologist
Research Associate, Department of Environmental Sciences
Email
Bio

VANESSA TROPIANO
Senior Research Specialist
Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy
Email
Bio

Partners

The Climate Change Resource Center includes key partners who collaborate in its research, tool development, education, and outreach projects and initiatives.

Partners

PRITPAL BAMHRAH
Senior Research Specialist
Environmental Analysis and Communications Group, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Email
Bio

JANINE BARR
Research Project Coordinator
Environmental Analysis and Communications Group, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Email
Bio

GARIN BULGER
Research Analyst
Environmental Analysis & Communications Group, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Email
Bio

MATT CAMPO
Coadjutant Faculty
Environmental Analysis and Communications Group, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Email
Bio

JON A. CARNEGIE
Executive Director
Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Email
Bio

EDWARD COHEN
Assistant Director
Center for Math, Science, and Computer Education
Email
Bio

JONATHAN DeLURA
Research Specialist
Center for Urban Policy Research
Email
Bio

DANIEL FARNSWORTH
Application Developer
Center for Urban Policy Research
Email
Bio

CARRIE FERRARO
Assistant Professor of Professional Practice
Director, Rutgers Science Explorer Program
Email

WILL IRVING
Professor of Practice
Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Email
Bio

BRIELLE KOCIOLEK
Senior iSTEM Education Coordinator
Center for Math, Science, and Computer Education
Email
Bio

RICHARD G. LATHROP, Jr.
Director
Grant F. Walton Center for Remote Sensing & Spatial Analysis
Professor of Environmental Monitoring
Rutgers University
Email
Bio

ZOË LINDER-BAPTIE
Research Project Manager
Environmental Analysis and Communications Group, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Email
Bio

KAREN LOWRIE
Associate Director
Environmental Analysis and Communications Group, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
Email
Bio

JANICE McDONNELL
Associate Professor
Science Engineering Technology (SET) Agent
Department of Marine & Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University
Email
Bio

MATTHEW NEWMAN
4-H Agent II, County Extension Department Head
Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Monmouth County
Email
Bio

EFTHYMIOS (THYMIOS) NIKOLOPOULOS
Associate Professor
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rutgers University
Email
Bio

MARK RODGERS
Assistant Professor
Supply Chain Management Department, Rutgers Business School
Email
Bio

GRACE SABA
Associate Professor
Department of Marine & Coastal Sciences
Email
Bio

JENNIFER SENICK
Senior Executive Director
Center for Urban Policy Research, Bloustein School of Urban Planning and Policy
Email
Bio

ASHLYN SPECTOR
Research Specialist
Environmental Analysis and Communications Group and NJ Climate Change Resource Center, Bloustein School of Public Policy and Planning
Email
Bio

MARISSA STAFFEN
4-H Agent III
Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Essex County
Email
Bio

MICHELLE STUART
Application Developer
Center for Urban Policy Research, Bloustein School of Urban Planning and Policy
Bio

MITAALI TASKAR
Research Project Assistant – Science Communicator
Department of Marine & Coastal Sciences
Email
Bio

Faculty Advisors

Rutgers Faculty Advisers to the New Jersey Climate Change Resource Center are leading researchers on climate change, climate change impacts on society and the environment, climate mitigation, and climate adaptation and resiliency. Their expertise grounds the Center’s work in the most up-to-date scholarship to inform the Center’s operations and workplan priorities.

Faculty Advisors

CLINTON J. ANDREWS
• Distinguished Professor and Associate Dean for Research, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy

• Director, Center for Urban Policy Research

Bio

ANTHONY BROCCOLI
• Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science, Rutgers University

• Earth Systems Science Lead, Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute

Bio

JIE GONG
• Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Bio

ROBERT KOPP
• Distinguished Professor, Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences

• Director, Megalopolitan Coastal Transformation Hub

Bio

ROBERT LAUMBACH
• Associate Professor, Rutgers University School of Public Health

• EOHSI – Clinical Research and Occupational Medicine

Bio

ROBIN LEICHENKO
• Dean of Social and Behavioral Sciences

• Former and founding co-director, Rutgers Climate Institute

• Professor, Department of Geography

Bio

JULIE L. LOCKWOOD
• Professor, Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources

• Director, Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute

Bio

External Advisory Committee

The External Advisory Committee is comprised of individuals invited by the CCRC Directors to provide advice on emerging issues and related impartial analyses that would help New Jersey adapt, mitigate, and prepare for climate change. External Advisory Committee members may provide input on workplan priorities; offer insights to the CCRC on topics for an annual convening on leading climate change issues and activities pertinent to New Jersey; advise the CCRC on opportunities for collaboration with other institutions, agencies, and organizations throughout the state; and identify areas of expertise that may be needed on the External Advisory Committee. External Advisors participate personally as individuals rather than as a representative of any organization to which they are affiliated.

External Advisors

ALEX AMBROSE