US CLIVAR Project Office

Mike joined the US CLIVAR Project Office as Director in January 2011. In this role, he is responsible for ensuring all scientific and programmatic coordination activities are completed as guided by the US CLIVAR Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) and supported by the Inter-Agency Group (IAG) of program managers.  He engages agency managers and fosters interagency dialogue through monthly IAG meetings, which he chairs. He supports the SSC and its Panels in the development of a new US CLIVAR Science Plan to identify priority research questions and challenges for the post-2013 era.  Over the past two decades, Mike has worked to implement climate and global change research programs, having served as program manager in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Global Programs and Climate Program Office, managing the Pan American Climate Studies and CLIVAR Pacific programs, and launching the Climate Prediction Program for the Americas.  More recently, prior to joining the US CLIVAR Office, he has served as interim program director at the  National Science Foundation, Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences Division, assisting in the management of the Climate Research Investment solicitation for Decadal and Regional Prediction Using Earth System Models.

Alyssa Cannistraci joined the US CLIVAR Project Office as a Program Specialist II June 2023. She supports Working Groups in achieving goals towards their three-year prospectuses. Activities include planning workshops, conferences, webinars, summer schools, and hackathons as well as editing white papers and state of science reports. Alyssa additionally co-leads US CLIVAR’s communications, social media, and outreach efforts. She previously supported projects for the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Mesoscale and Microscale Meteorology (MMM) Lab Weather Risks and Decisions in Society (WRaDS) research group. She is a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Hollings and Lapenta internship alumna. Alyssa received her MS in geography from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and BS in meteorology from Millersville University.

Sam is a Program Specialist for the US CLIVAR Project Office. He coordinates communication, outreach, information dissemination, and other support activities for many US CLIVAR programs. Sam joined US CLIVAR in February 2022 after completing his M.S. at Rutgers University where he conducted research into the interactions between the upper ocean and surface atmosphere during tropical cyclones. This past experience has aided Sam in his support of the Air-Sea Interactions Working Group and the Air-Sea Transition Zone Study Group.

Alyssa Johnson is a program specialist for the US CLIVAR Project Office. Using her Earth science and science outreach background, she supports the US CLIVAR Panels, organizes workshops and meetings, and coordinates communication, outreach, and information dissemination for the US CLIVAR program. She has her MS in geoscience from Baylor University and BS in geology and environmental geoscience from the College of Charleston. Her previous experience includes working at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the National Parks Service, and the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at CU Boulder. As a program specialist, she is excited to facilitate the advancement of high-quality science within a welcoming and equitable environment.

Tania is the Web Developer for the Cooperative Programs for the Advancement of Earth System Science (CPAESS), which is part of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) in Boulder, Colorado. Tania developed the US CLIVAR website and is maintaining it. Tania has been working in the field of web development for many years and has been with UCAR since 2006 and at CPAESS since February 2011. Previously she worked as a scientific computer programmer. She has two bachelor's degrees, the first in English from Binghamton University and the second is in Computer Science and Fine Art from the University of Colorado, Boulder.