A satellite image over Bangladesh. Drawn over the image are dozens of lines representing tropical cyclone tracks.

CREWSnet project forecasts a climate early warning system for all

Climate Grand Challenges flagship project aims to empower underserved communities by providing tools they need to plan for the future
November 21, 2022
MIT Spectrum

Across Bangladesh, climate change is a daily reality, reshaping everything from housing and crops to economic policy and social life. As in other climate-vulnerable regions, residents face urgent questions about the future: Should they attempt to relocate? Would it be better to stay and adapt? What resources are available to guide and support their decisions?

Such questions motivate CREWSnet (the Climate Resilience Early Warning System Network), a groundbreaking collaboration between MIT and Bangladesh-based global nonprofit BRAC. CREWSnet is one of five flagship projects chosen for support in 2022 through MIT’s Climate Grand Challenges initiative.

According to Deborah Campbell, MIT Lincoln Laboratory’s Climate Change Initiative co-lead and CREWSnet’s executive director, “the project is empowering underserved communities by giving them the tools they need to interpret local risk, minimize loss, and plan for their futures.”