Charter of the U.S. Climate Change Technology Program Office

Purpose

The Climate Change Technology Program (CCTP) provides for the coordination and development of a multi-year, comprehensive and integrated climate change technology R&D program for the U.S. Its goal is to assist the U.S., including its R&D collaborators, at home and abroad, in developing advanced technologies eventually needed to achieve the long-term UNFCCC goal, ratified by the United States and endorsed by President Bush, to “achieve . . . stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the earth's atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference the climate system.”

CCTP Office

The Climate Change Technology Program Office is responsible for formulating and presenting, in consultation with R&D agencies, and with input from a broad array of sources, a multi-year R&D program plan for the Federal Government on climate change technology development. As part of the planning activities, the CCTP Office will:

• Serve as a forum for inputs to the R&D plan, including workshops and public meetings
• Cooperate and coordinate with the relevant R&D agencies
• Provide staff support to at least five interagency R&D working groups
• Identify ongoing R&D activities and establish R&D goals, near- and long-term
• Consider the state of knowledge on climate science, economic and environmental trends
• Conduct studies and analyses and assess the potential of technologies
• Review and evaluate the current Federal R&D portfolio against established goals
• Determine R&D needs and opportunities, as appropriate
• Formulate and present recommendations, through the Interagency Working Group on Climate Change Science and Technology (IWG), to the Cabinet-level Committee on Climate Change Science and Technology Integration (CCCSTI).
• Assist the CCCSTI in formulating Federal budget guidance to the agencies
• Prepare periodic reports to the CCCSTI.

Competitive Solicitations

The Climate Change Technology Program will, to the extent funds are available, carry out a research program of competitive solicitations to explore novel concepts, technologies or technical approaches that could, if successful, contribute in significant ways to future reductions or avoidances of “greenhouse gas” emissions, and/or capture and sequestration.

Staff Functions

The supporting staff organization is organized to support the interagency work groups, and to carry out the program functions outlined above. In addition, the staff will perform certain integrative, analytical, modeling, communication and administrative functions. One set of envisioned staff duties includes:

• Leadership and program direction (director, deputy, and administrative support)
• Subject matter experts for work group support (one for each work group)
• Program integration, synthesis, R&D plan development and annual report writing
• Technical lead for the competitive solicitations (execution in a Federal field office)
• Long-term modeling, technology assessments, scenarios and strategy building
• Communications and information management (including frequent updating of web site)
• Budget analysis, planning and presentations, in support of recommendations.