Documents

• The 2026 South Central Climate Resilience Forum
• New Publications and Reports
• Rachel Riley Moderates Panel at Insurcon

This paper develops a regional climatology of wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT), a heat stress index that combines air temperature, humidity, wind speed, and solar radiation to represent environmental heat exposure. Thompson and Brown used athlete and worker safety thresholds to identify where WBGT is hazardous for individuals most at risk for heat-related health impacts.

To examine opportunities to build resilience, An Extreme Weather and Resilience Workshop was held in the City of Shreveport, Louisiana in March 2025. Participants from city departments and partners collaborated with staff from the Southern Climate Impacts Planning Program (SCIPP) to examine the greatest weather-related challenges the city faces. Three areas were highlighted: High winds and storms; heat and cold; and intense rainfall. This report highlights the discussion and recommendations related to these three areas, along with general community preparedness.

The goal of this report is to provide a concise summary of the climate and extreme weather events that affect the City of Shreveport. This information could be used to help inform planning and preparedness for extreme weather events now and in the future.

This report is a summary of community-centered resilience networks and peer learning exchange across the U.S.

• Early Bird Registration for the 2026 South Central Climate Resilience Forum (SCCRF)
• Oklahoma’s January Tornadoes
• New SCIPP Reports

This report provides a summary of SCIPP’s 2025 Summer Internship Program’s participants, procedures, early outcomes, and recommendations. It highlights data collected from both the interns and the host organizations.

This report highlights numerous recommendations from members of the home builder, insurance, and real estate industries to improve the resilience of homes to severe weather hazards commonly seen in central Oklahoma.

• SCIPP Summer Internship 2-Pager
• Hazard Resilient Buildings Workshop
• Rachel Riley at National Hazard Mitigation Association Webinar

2-pager summarizing relevant information and providing highlights pertaining to the 2025 Summer Internship.

This resource was produced in conjunction with the research project, Building Capacity for Hazard Mitigation Planning in Low-Capacity Communities.

This resource was produced in conjunction with the research project, Building Capacity for Hazard Mitigation Planning in Low-Capacity Communities.

This resource was produced in conjunction with the research project, Building Capacity for Hazard Mitigation Planning in Low-Capacity Communities.

In early 2021, the South Central United States faced a period of extreme cold and two major winter storms, later being dubbed the Valentine’s Week Winter Outbreak. A team including SCIPP researchers evaluated the causes and impacts of this event and detailed their findings in a journal article. This brief summarizes their findings.

• 2024-2025 Annual Report
• New Louisiana Hazard Mitigation Guide
• SCIPP Gives Extreme Heat Presentations

The residents of New Orleans are often allowed to park in the the elevated space in between the lanes of a street during heavy rainfall as it offers a few extra inches of protection against flooding. Current and former SCIPP researchers investigate the accuracy of this system’s activation by comparing it to data such as flood occurrences. This brief summarizes the study by featuring the most important information.

NCA5 is a technical scientific assessment of climate change-related risks, impacts, and responses in the United States. This file contains Chapter 26: Southern Great Plains. The full report with 32 chapters on physical science, national-level sectors (e.g., water, energy, agriculture, infrastructure, etc.), regional impacts, and responses (mitigation and adaptation), can be accessed and downloaded at the NOAA Archives link here.

NCA5 is a technical scientific assessment of climate change-related risks, impacts, and responses in the United States. This file contains Chapter 22: Southeast. The full report with 32 chapters on physical science, national-level sectors (e.g., water, energy, agriculture, infrastructure, etc.), regional impacts, and responses (mitigation and adaptation) can be accessed and downloaded at the NOAA Archives link here.