Advancing interdisciplinary, actionable, and convergent research in the atmospheric and related sciences: Findings and recommendations from a project at the National Center for Atmospheric Research

Scientists, scientific organizations, research institutions, and funding agencies are increasingly emphasizing research that integrates across areas of expertise to address complex scientific and societal problems. As part of this evolution, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) has articulated a path forward that includes fostering strategic innovation to advance societally beneficial atmospheric and Earth system science. However, NCAR and other organizations still face many challenges to developing and conducting such work. This report presents methods, findings, and recommendations from a recent study to understand and synthesize key opportunities, challenges, and next steps for advancing interdisciplinary, societally beneficial, and convergent research, at NCAR and beyond. The study found that NCAR staff and community members have diverse understandings of these types of work, including some misconceptions that are hindering progress. Moreover, while many NCAR staff, university researchers, and other community members believe that inclusive, societally beneficial science is critical, they lack capacity for productively engaging in such work and experience barriers to doing so. Based on these findings, the study recommends a multi-faceted implementation strategy for NCAR to capitalize on opportunities in this space and address the identified gaps. To be sustainable, such efforts must integrate expertise on interdisciplinary, actionable, and convergent research as respected, equal partners in organizational leadership and management, in order to co-develop a coherent comprehensive vision and guide effective long-term implementation. Many of the recommendations can also be useful to NCAR laboratories and programs and other institutions and groups interested in advancing these types of work.