The Future of the CSTE Climate Change Indicators: Where Does Sehic Go from Here?

Key Objectives:

• Share the existing SEHIC climate change indicators, needed revisions, and web data usage for the SEHIC climate change website
• Identify partners among state and territorial epidemiologists for updating the CSTE SEHIC climate change indicators
• Solicit needs from state and territorial epidemiologists for climate change indicators

Brief Summary:
Indicators are important mechanism for tracking health impacts of climate change. Several major organizations have developed climate change and health indicators, including the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) State Environmental Health Indicator Collaborative (SEHIC). The SEHIC climate change indicators were piloted in 2011. Since then, the Environmental Public Health Tracking Network has come forward with a multitude of climate and health data and relevant indicators. In addition, the SEHIC climate change indicators rely on data collected by other organizations, and SEHIC was not able to maintain continued data access and availability for the indicator data sources. Therefore, some of the SEHIC indicators are no longer able to be used by states, territories, localities, and other users. The Climate Change Subcommittee is soliciting CSTE membership feedback on two key questions:

• What is the utility of the existing SEHIC climate change indicators?
• What needs exist for climate change indicators?

At the roundtable, data will be shared on current web usage information of the CSTE SEHIC climate change indicators. Additionally, lists of the current CSTE SEHIC climate change indicators and the needed revisions will be shared. The purpose of this roundtable is to provide the CSTE Climate Change Subcommittee Chair and a CSTE Associate Research Analyst with information about the utility of the existing indicators and any needs for climate change indicators.