Laura: JORGE TORRES, YOU'RE AT ABC-15 IN ARIZONA  NOW, BUT OUR VIEWERS WILL KNOW YOU FROM KOB CHANNEL 4  HERE IN ALBUQUERQUE.

WELCOME TO NEW MEXICO  InFOCUS.

IT IS GREAT TO SEE YOU.

Jorge: LIKEWISE, LAURA.

GREAT TO BE CHATTING WITH YOU AND EVERYONE WATCHING  FROM NEW MEXICO, WHICH WAS MY HOME FOR A LONG BUT  ENJOYABLE SIX YEARS.

Laura: WE'RE REALLY GLAD  TO HAVE YOU.

SO THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL  PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE CAME OUT WITH ITS ASSESSMENT  REPORT LAST WEEK.

I'M CURIOUS, HOW DID ABC-15  COVER THAT REPORT?

AND EVEN THOUGH SOUTHERN  ARIZONA AND NEW MEXICO DO HAVE SOME DIFFERENCES, WHAT  ARE THE BIG TAKE-HOMES FOR THE U.S. SOUTHWEST?

Jorge: WELL, ONE OF THE TAKE-AWAYS THAT WE SAW FROM  THE REPORT IS THAT HUMAN ACTIVITIES ARE INFLUENCING  WHAT'S HAPPENING AROUND US.

INCREASED CARBON DIOXIDE  EMISSIONS ARE WARMING THE PLANET, AND WE SEE THAT  PREVALENTLY HERE IN THE SOUTHWEST.

WE'RE TALKING PROLONGED HEAT WAVES, PROLONGED DROUGHTS,  AND THAT'S IMPACTING ALL OF US.

AND WE DID THAT STORY IN TWO WAYS.

WE TALKED TO ONE OF THE AUTHORS OF THE IPCC REPORT,  WHO HAPPENS TO BE A UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA  PROFESSOR.

SO THAT BROUGHT IT CLOSER TO  THE LOCAL PERSPECTIVE, AS TO HOW SOMEONE WHO STUDIES  CLIMATE HERE AND HOW IT IMPACTS US.

AND THEN WE FOLLOWED IT UP WITH PRESIDENT BIDEN'S  INFRASTRUCTURE BILL THAT'S GOING THROUGH CONGRESS AS WE  SPEAK AND SOME OF THE CLIMATE-RESILIENT  IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS THAT ARE PLANNED WITHIN THAT  BILL, AND HOW THAT WOULD IMPACT ARIZONA AND PEOPLE IN  THE SOUTHWEST, TOO.

Laura: SO MORE BROADLY  SPEAKING, HOW DOES ABC-15 INCORPORATE CLIMATE CHANGE  INTO ITS NEWS COVERAGE, AND KIND OF WHAT IS YOUR ROLE AS  A METEOROLOGIST IN SORT OF EITHER WORKING WITH THE NEWS  TEAM OR PITCHING STORIES TO THE NEWS TEAM?

Jorge: WELL, AS A METEOROLOGIST, I'M ALSO  WHAT'S KNOWN AS A STATION SCIENTIST.

I HELP BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN THE SCIENCE AND THE  COMMUNITY AS TO WHAT THIS ALL MEANS FOR US.

AND MY JOB HERE IS TO OBVIOUSLY TALK ABOUT  WEATHER, BUT ALSO TALK ABOUT HOW WEATHER AND CLIMATE PLAY  A ROLE IN OUR LIVES AND CONNECTING THE DOTS.

OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS, WE'VE NOTICED SOME  SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN OUR FORECAST HERE IN ARIZONA  WITH THE MONSOON.

WE'RE SEEING A LOT MORE  STORMS COMPARED TO THE PAST TWO YEARS, WHEN WE HAD  ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

AND WHAT I DO IS CONNECT THE  DOTS.

HOW IS CLIMATE CHANGE AND  WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW CONNECTED?

AND WE'RE SEEING, AT LEAST FOR THE PAST FEW WEEKS HERE,  WE'RE SEEING MORE STORMS.

WITH THE ATMOSPHERE HOLDING  MORE WATER, BECAUSE IT'S WARMER, A LOT MORE RAIN IS  COMING, WHICH LEADS TO EXTREME AND DEVASTATING  FLOODS.

AND WE'VE HAD,  UNFORTUNATELY, SOME DEADLY FLOODS HERE OVER JUST THE  PAST FEW WEEKS.

AND WITH THAT, WE GET SOME  ASSISTANCE FROM ONE OF OUR PARTNERS, KNOWN AS CLIMATE  CENTRAL.

THEY'RE A NONPARTISAN  CLIMATE-BASED SCIENCE GROUP FULL OF METEOROLOGISTS AND  CLIMATE SCIENTISTS WHO MAKE GRAPHICS AND CHARTS SHOWING  FOR EACH RESPECTIVE STATE AND CITY HOW THE CLIMATE  THERE HAS CHANGED OVER THE PAST 20, 30, 50, EVEN 100  YEARS.

AND WE USE THAT NOT IN EVERY  NEWSCAST OR WEATHERCAST, BUT WHEN APPLICABLE.

AND IT HAS BEEN AT LEAST OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS AND  MONTHS, AND ALSO FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS.

WE'VE BEEN USING THEM FOR A WHILE.

Laura: SO THIS SUMMER YOU ALL ARE DEALING WITH  THESE DEVASTATING DROUGHTS, THESE BIG STORMS, AND YET  WE'RE ALSO SEEING THE HEADLINES.

YOU KNOW, COLORADO RIVER SHORTAGES, DROUGHT.

HOW DO YOU COMMUNICATE THAT ALL OF THESE THINGS ARE  HAPPENING AND RELATED TO CLIMATE CHANGE, AND BIG  STORMS DON'T NECESSARILY CANCEL OUT DROUGHT?

I MEAN, THAT'S A TRICKY STORY TO GET ACROSS TO THE  PUBLIC.

Jorge: IT IS.

WHEN PEOPLE HAVE SEEN THAT IT'S BEEN RAINING, OH,  GREAT, DROUGHT'S OVER.

IT'S NOT THAT SIMPLE.

WE WISH IT WAS, BUT THAT'S JUST NOT THE CASE.

WE NEED THE STORMS TO BE PROLONGED, WE NEED THEM TO  BE CONSISTENT.

THAT HAS BEEN THE ISSUE.

WHEN IT DOES RAIN, IT'S VERY INCONSISTENT.

AND THEN THE DROUGHT, IT HAS BEEN CONSISTENT.

AND THEN ON MONDAY, THE BUREAU OF RECLAMATION FOR  THE FIRST TIME EVER DECLARED A WATER SHORTAGE AT LAKE  MEAD, WHICH DIRECTLY IMPACTS PLACES LIKE ARIZONA, NEVADA,  AND EVEN THE COUNTRY OF MEXICO.

NOW FOR ARIZONA, THIS MEANS LESS WATER FOR FARMERS IN  PINAL COUNTY, WHICH IS JUST SOUTH OF THE PHOENIX METRO.

SO IT'S ALREADY IMPACTING US.

THE DROUGHT, THE PROLONGED DROUGHT, IS ALREADY HAVING  AN IMPACT ON ARIZONA AND PEOPLE ACROSS THE SOUTHWEST,  AND UNFORTUNATELY, CLIMATE CHANGE MAY CONTINUE TO MEAN  PROLONGED AND SEVERE DROUGHTS, AND PERHAPS EVEN  MORE WATER CUTS IN THE FUTURE.

Laura: SO ONE OF THE THINGS -- WHEN YOU WERE HERE  IN NEW MEXICO, I BECAME AN IMMEDIATE FAN OF YOURS,  BECAUSE YOU WERE POSTING ON SOCIAL MEDIA ABOUT CLIMATE  CHANGE, WHICH FROM MY PERSPECTIVE AND MY  EXPERIENCE, A LOT OF METEOROLOGISTS AT COMMERCIAL  TELEVISION STATIONS FOR A LONG TIME HAVE NOT REALLY  BEEN TALKING ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE.

I'M CURIOUS IF YOU COULD TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHY  THAT MIGHT BE.

LIKE, WHY CLIMATE CHANGE  DOESN'T MAKE IT INTO SORT OF FORECAST BROADCAST  CONVERSATIONS, AND MAYBE WHAT SOME OF THE CHALLENGES  ARE AROUND GETTING THAT BIG TOPIC INTO A SHORT PART OF  THE NEWS SEGMENT.

Jorge: WELL, FOR A LOT  OF METEOROLOGISTS, CLIMATE SCIENCE IS SOMETHING THAT'S  HONESTLY KIND OF OUT OF THEIR AREA OF EXPERTISE,  BECAUSE WEATHER IS STUDYING ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING MORE  OR LESS IN THE NEAR-TERM AND  OBSERVING PATTERNS IN THE SHORT-TERM.

CLIMATE CHANGE, YOU'RE TALKING HUNDREDS OF YEARS,  THOUSANDS OF YEARS, EVEN MILLIONS OF YEARS.

SO THAT KNOWLEDGE FOR MOST METEOROLOGISTS IS NOT AS  WELL KNOWN AS JUST WEATHER FORECASTING AND METEOROLOGY,  ITSELF.

WITH THAT BEING SAID, WE  HAVE BEEN LEARNING A LOT MORE ABOUT HOW CLIMATE IS  IMPACTING US, AND WE'VE TALKED TO A LOT OF EXPERTS,  A LOT OF SCIENTISTS, A LOT OF PROFESSORS IN ACADEMIA  ABOUT HOW CLIMATE IS CHANGING.

AND SO WITH THAT, WE'RE GETTING A BETTER  UNDERSTANDING AND AN UNDERSTANDING THAT  SCIENTISTS KNOW WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT.

THEY'VE BEEN STUDYING THIS FOR DECADES.

SO WE ARE VERY CONFIDENT NOW THAT WE'RE STARTING TO POST  MORE.

WE'RE SEEING IT A LOT MORE.

A LOT MORE METEOROLOGISTS ARE BEGINNING TO POST MORE  AND TALK MORE ABOUT CLIMATE AND CLIMATE CHANGE, EVEN IN  AREAS WHERE PEOPLE MAY DISAGREE WITH IT AND MAY  EVEN BECOME, ON SOCIAL MEDIA, ANYWAYS, A BIT  NEGATIVE WHEN IT COMES TO COMMENTING.

BUT IT'S ALL ABOUT THE SCIENCE, AND WE TRUST THE  SCIENCE AND WE UNDERSTAND THAT CLIMATE IS CHANGING.

Laura: ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I ALWAYS FIND REALLY  INTERESTING ABOUT COVERING CLIMATE CHANGE AS A REPORTER  IS IT'S THIS BIG GLOBAL STORY, AND OFTEN YOU HAVE  THE BIG NATIONAL OUTLETS DO LIKE A BIG ATTENTION-GETTING  STORY ON CLIMATE CHANGE, AND THOSE ARE SUPER IMPORTANT,  BUT I'M A BIG FAN OF REPETITIVE LOCALIZED  REPORTING THAT GETS TO YOUR LOCAL AUDIENCE SO THEY  UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THEIR OWN COMMUNITIES AND  ACROSS THEIR OWN LANDSCAPES.

AND I'M CURIOUS HOW YOU  THINK THAT TV METEOROLOGISTS MIGHT BE ABLE TO DO A BETTER  JOB OF KIND OF GETTING THAT SUSTAINED COVERAGE INTO THAT  DAILY COVERAGE THAT SO MANY PEOPLE SEE.

Jorge: I THINK THE KEY IS JUST BEING WILLING TO DO  IT.

WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY.

SCIENTISTS -- OR METEOROLOGISTS, IN FACT, ARE  SOME OF THE ONLY PEOPLE THAT PEOPLE, THAT VIEWERS, KNOW  THAT ARE SCIENTISTS THAT ARE IN THEIR HOMES ALMOST EVERY  DAY, SO WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT THAT  INFORMATION ON A DAILY BASIS.

AND METEOROLOGISTS TEND TO BE SOME OF THE MORE  TRUSTWORTHY PEOPLE WHEN IT COMES TO NEWS AND LOCAL  TELEVISION.

PEOPLE COME TO US BECAUSE  THEY WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THEIR DAY, THEY  WANT TO KNOW HOW THIS WILL IMPACT THEIR LIVES.

AND IF THEY'RE WATCHING SOMEONE THEY TRUST TALK  ABOUT THESE ISSUES, THEY'RE LIKE, OKAY, THERE MUST BE  SOMETHING THERE.

Laura: FOR THOSE WHO  MIGHT BE EVEN STILL TODAY RELUCTANT TO TAKE ON THE  TOPIC FOR FEAR OF ALIENATING EITHER THEIR NEWSROOM  COLLEAGUES OR BOSSES OR THE AUDIENCE, WHAT ADVICE DO YOU  HAVE FOR THEM?

Jorge:   YOU KNOW WHAT, I ACTUALLY HAD THIS ISSUE WHEN  I WORKED IN NEW MEXICO.

BUT YOU HAVE TO FIND WAYS TO  PRESENT IT IN A WAY THAT PERHAPS ISN'T AS OBVIOUS AS,  SAY, WHAT WE DO HERE IN ARIZONA.

BUT JUST PRESENT SOME SIMPLE DATA.

FOR EXAMPLE, THERE WERE SEVERAL YEARS WHERE THE NEW  MEXICO DROUGHT WAS JUST PERSISTENT.

JUST SHOW HOW LONG IT'S BEEN COMPARED TO PREVIOUS YEARS,  AND JUST SHOW THAT TREND CONTINUING.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY, 'OH, CLIMATE CHANGE IS CAUSING  THIS,' BUT JUST SAY, 'OVER THE YEARS, WE'VE NOTICED  THESE TRENDS HAVE BEEN CONTINUING.'

AND THAT, IN AND OF ITSELF, IS HOW YOU CAN PRESENT IT  WITHOUT FULLY PRESENTING IT.

Laura: SO I'M CURIOUS IF  YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE OUT THERE FOR OTHER  METEOROLOGISTS WHO ARE COVERING WEATHER LOCALLY OR  OTHER REPORTERS IN COMMERCIAL TV NEWSROOMS WHO  MAYBE WANT TO INCORPORATE MORE CLIMATE SCIENCE INTO  THEIR NEWS COVERAGE.

Jorge:   WELL, ONE THING I LEARNED BEING IN THIS  BUSINESS ALREADY FOR A LONG TIME IS THAT THERE ARE SO  MANY EXPERTS, SO MANY AVENUES OUT THERE TO GET  THIS INFORMATION, AND THERE'S ALWAYS NEW RESEARCH  BEING DONE, NEW PUBLICATIONS BEING PUT OUT, ABOUT  WHETHER, ABOUT CLIMATE, ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE AND HOW  IT IMPACTS LOCAL COMMUNITIES.

I KNOW THAT IN NEW MEXICO, FIRSTHAND, YOU HAVE A GREAT  WATER BLOGGER IN JOHN FLECK, WHO IS SUPER WELL-KNOWN IN  THE COMMUNITY, IN THE WATER COMMUNITY, SPECIFICALLY, AND  HERE IN ARIZONA, TOO.

SO THERE ARE RESOURCES  AVAILABLE FOR YOU TO TALK TO WHEN IT COMES TO THESE  SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTALLY RELATED TOPICS.

NOW, AS FAR AS PRESENTING THIS ON AIR FOR A  METEOROLOGIST, FOR EXAMPLE, AND YOU'RE CONCERNED ABOUT,  YOU KNOW, YOU'RE ONE OF THE MORE TRUSTED PEOPLE ON  TELEVISION, BUT YET YOU TALK ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE AND  THEN PEOPLE START TO BE LIKE, NO, I DON'T KNOW ABOUT  THAT.

KEEP AT IT.

THERE ARE RESOURCES AVAILABLE, THERE ARE OTHER  COLLEAGUES IN THE BUSINESS WHO HAVE GONE THROUGH  SIMILAR PUSHBACKS.

BUT KNOW THAT THE AVENUE IS  THERE TO GO, ESPECIALLY IN A PLACE LIKE NEW MEXICO WHERE  YOU'RE NOTICING CLIMATE CHANGE, AS WELL.

THE WATER ISSUE IS NOT GOING AWAY, THE DROUGHT ISSUE IS  NOT GOING AWAY, EITHER, AND THE WILDFIRE ISSUE IS NOT  GOING AWAY.

Laura: JORGE, I CAN'T  THANK YOU ENOUGH.

I REALLY APPRECIATE YOU  POPPING INTO THE NEW MEXICO AUDIENCE TO TALK WITH US  ABOUT THIS, AND I REALLY FOUND YOU TO TRULY BE A  LEADER AS A TELEVISION METEOROLOGIST COVERING  CLIMATE CHANGE, AND I'M REALLY THANKFUL FOR THAT.

SO THANKS FOR JOINING ME.

Jorge: THANK YOU.

AND HELLO AGAIN AND GOODBYE TO EVERYONE IN NEW MEXICO.

SAVE SOME GREEN CHILE FOR ME!