A national system of physical, ecological, and societal indicators is considered a foundational component of the sustained assessment process, serving to help users understand the changing environment, assess risks and vulnerabilities, and make informed decisions to build resilience to change. A 2019 Federal–academic workshop sought to advance the development of socio-environmental systems indicators of climate change to support adaptation and resilience decisions at various scales in the United States.

This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from NSF. Nineteen participants from Federal agencies (EPA, NOAA, USDA Forest Service), academia, State, and non-governmental organizations convened at SESYNC headquarters in Annapolis, Maryland, on May 15–17, 2019. Participants discussed strategies for integrating social and environmental data into indicators, and shared perspectives on how to build robust resilience knowledge and better address the needs of people doing resilience and adaptation projects when designing indicators for use in decision-making.