Critically Thinking about "Climate Etc."

THANKS to Dr. Judith Curry

Recently, there was a monumental development that 99% of the world didn’t notice or adequately appreciate. Let’s start with the fact that Dr. Judith Curry is a world-renowned climate expert, with impeccable bona fides.

For MANY years she has willingly absorbed the slings and arrows of the media and compromised scientists, because she had the audacity to push back against the climate alarmist narrative — one of the major scourges of our lifetime. Despite numerous obstacles and attacks, she was committed to selflessly sharing Real Climate Science with the public.

On her very popular blog (Climate Etc.) Dr. Curry posted documented scientific information, answered questions, took criticism, etc. None of this was for financial gain, as her net blog costs were tens of thousands of dollars. Her most recent post (below) is about ending her blog (after 16 years) and moving on.

Dr. Curry has been a sensible, scientific voice for YOU. IMHO, she is not only an exemplary Scientist, but is a true American patriot. Thank you, Judy!

————————————————

RIP: Climate Etc.

(Posted on June 23, 2026, by Dr. Judith Curry)

It’s time to declare victory against climate stupidity and move on.

Well, the definition of victory here is about as fuzzy as that for the Iran war. Here is a summary of why Climate Etc. is being euthanized:

• Major progress has been made in the climate debate and the political climate has changed

• My interests have evolved in other directions

• The logistics and cost of keeping the blog running are substantial.

State of the Climate Wars

There have been some decisive battles in the past two years, notably President Trump’s election, the DOE Climate Report, and widespread acknowledgement that RCP8.5 is an implausible emissions scenario. As a result, many news agencies have dropped or substantially reduced their climate desk, we don’t hear about climate change so much in the media (particularly as related to extreme weather events). Also, we can’t underestimate the impact of substantially reduced funding for climate-related NGOs, with USAID and other funds drying up.

The leaders of the climate alarmism movement have not conceded defeat but have done much whining, notably over President Trump and the RCP8.5 scenario. They are still trying to discredit the authors of the DOE Report. Triggered by the DOE Report, they have mostly stopped flogging the warming/extreme weather link, although there is a hardcore group that is committed to extreme event attribution as a mechanism to support litigation against fossil fuel companies. With the demise of the extreme weather link, the climate alarmists are now focused on climate “tipping points,” which simply doesn’t resonate with the public (extreme weather events were much more alarming).

But most importantly, the whole issue has lost its political relevance. During the past several months, we have watched the entire world panic over loss of access to Middle Eastern oil, and major concerns raised about the need for massively more electricity to support data centers. Putting a tourniquet around our energy supply in the name of eliminating CO₂ emissions is a much worse idea now than it was even a few years ago, and that seems to be widely recognized (even in Europe). Most tellingly, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has dropped climate change as an issue, now focusing on AI (and health).

We are perhaps at an inflection point; one can only hope that the climate enterprise will redirect its efforts away from flogging the CO₂ climate control knob mantra and towards understanding regional climate variability, particularly as influenced by natural variability, to support efforts at reducing vulnerability to weather extremes. And figure out how to better work with nature to support our needs for food, water, energy.

I’m moving on

When I was planning my retirement from Georgia Tech, I viewed Climate Etc. as a hedge against becoming bored in my retirement. Ha! Seems that it is impossible for me to become bored; too many interesting things to do and to learn about and to ponder.

After publishing my book Climate Uncertainty and Risk, and co-authoring the DOE Climate Report (I have prepared revisions to my sections; who knows when this will ever be published), I frankly don’t have much more to say on the topic of the climate wars. I have no interest in battling with the likes of Michael Mann, Andrew Dessler, et al. (does anybody still care what they have to say?)

Apart from the climate wars, I remain very interested in the fascinating and complex climate system, I erratically consume new research as I come across it (which can be pretty random sometimes). But most of climate science has become BORING . . . too much mega-modeling and politicking, and not enough thinking. In any event, I no longer have an interest in writing for the public on these topics.

My professional interests are more focused on extreme weather on timescales from hours to a year, which is the focus of my company Climate Forecast Applications Network (CFAN), along with decision-making under uncertainty and risk science. It’s a fascinating time for weather forecasting, and CFAN is deeply immersed in the new opportunities afforded by AI. I write reports on a range of related topics, which are sent to CFAN’s clients (they are not made public). I continue to do consulting on climate-related topics, supporting litigation and developing regional, decadal-scale scenarios to support risk assessment for specific client needs.

I’ve been pretty quiet on Twitter (I can’t bring myself to call it X) for the last several months; maybe I should step up my commentary there — I still have a lot to say, and short comments responding to a paper or news item are about the right level of effort at this point.

Now that my granddaughter is in high school (yes, she is very interested in science), I have been paying more attention to what is going on at the universities, which I abandoned in disgust almost a decade ago.

Personally, after a big downsizing and moving into a much smaller and simpler place, Peter and I are focused on our new dog Lucy, after our previous dogs Bruno and Rosie succumbed to old age. And establishing the garden at our new place.

A peaceful life with family and friends, exploring the world and its new developments from my laptop, and having a blast with AI.

Blog logistics

Climate Etc. is a really old blog in terms of blog years – since 2010. Since then, WordPress has modernized and upgraded. Hacking/security has become a growing issue. The way that Climate Etc. was originally set up is fairly obsolete.

I have set up a new account on Substack; if I am ever motivated to resume blogging, that is where I will be. I can also make extended posts on Twitter (X), although that is more awkward for anything at all technical. Anything newsworthy that I write I will send to WUWT.

But frankly, beyond this current post I’m not seeing any blogging or other public writing in my future.

Eulogy

Climate Etc. isn’t dead yet, but it is in hospice, and all life support is being removed (I’m not paying any more $$ to support the blog). We’ll see how long the patches, etc. that I’ve already paid for will keep the site accessible.

An experiment that started in 2010 in the wake of ClimateGate, Climate Etc. has exceeded my wildest expectations. It has been one of the highlights of my career, and I am endlessly grateful to all of you who have participated here (especially guest bloggers) and to the new friends and colleagues that I have found from the blog. My book Climate Uncertainty and Risk is a culmination of the topics that we have explored on the blog, and is the legacy of this blog.

While writing this post, I have reminisced about the denizens and “characters” that have come and gone on this blog. An amazing cross-section of people with diverse expertise from many different parts of the world.

My deepest thanks to all of the guest posters and commenters who have contributed to making Climate Etc. a vibrant, stimulating, and occasionally influential place. My very best wishes to each of you.

---

Thanks for reading Critically Thinking About Select Societal Issues! Please pass a link to this article on to other associates who might benefit. They can subscribe for FREE to receive new posts (typically about twice a week.

Here is other information from this scientist that you might find interesting:

I urge all readers to subscribe to AlterAI — IMO the absolute best AI option for subjective questions.

I will consider posting reader submissions on Critical Thinking about my topics of interest.

My commentaries are my opinion about the material discussed therein, based on the information I have. If any readers have different information, please share it. If it is credible, I will be glad to reconsider my position.

Check out the Archives of this Critical Thinking substack.

C19Science.info is my one-page website that covers the lack of genuine Science behind our COVID-19 policies.

Election-Integrity.info is my one-page website that lists multiple major reports on the election integrity issue.

WiseEnergy.org is my multi-page website that discusses the Science (or lack thereof) behind our energy options.

Media Balance Newsletter: a free, twice-a-month newsletter that covers what the mainstream media does not do, on issues from climate to COVID, elections to education, renewables to religion, etc. Here are the Newsletter’s 2026 Archives. Please send me an email to get your free copy. When emailing me, please make sure to include your full name and the state where you live. (Of course, you can cancel the Media Balance Newsletter at any time!)