The and Department of Communication at 鶹Ƶ is pleased to announce the appointment of John Kotcher as the interim director of the . Kotcher succeeds Edward Maibach, the center’s founding director and Distinguished University Professor Emeritus, who is retiring after 18 years of leadership.
Kotcher, who earned a PhD in communication from George 鶹Ƶ in 2016, has played a central role in the center’s research and impact for more than a decade. He currently serves as a research associate professor at the center, where he leads a dynamic team of faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate students dedicated to advancing public engagement and climate change communication.
Kotcher is a nationally recognized scholar and a co-principal investigator of the influential Climate Change in the American Mind project, a collaboration with the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication that tracks U.S. public opinion on climate change and climate policy.
Over the course of his career, he has served as principal investigator or co-investigator on more than $1.2 million in research funding and has written more than 50 peer-reviewed publications. His work has appeared in leading journals including The Lancet Planetary Health, Nature Climate Change, and The BMJ, and has been featured in major news outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Atlantic.
“I’m honored to step into this role and continue the center’s important mission at such a critical time,” said Kotcher. “Dr. Maibach has shaped the field of climate communication, and I’m grateful for his mentorship and the opportunity to support our team’s ongoing work to inform and empower the public and conduct action-oriented research.”
Maibach is widely considered one of the most influential figures in the field of climate communication. During his tenure, he co-founded major national initiatives including the Climate Change in the American Mind project, the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health, and the Climate Matters program supporting broadcast meteorologists as local climate educators. In 2021, news agency Thompson Reuters identified him as one of the world’s 10 most influential scientists working on climate change.
“John brings a deep understanding of the science of climate communication that drives our work,” said Maibach. “He’s a thoughtful leader and a brilliant scholar. I’m so pleased that our center will be moving forward under his guidance.”
"The Center for Climate Change Communication has helped create an entirely new field of study and has served the nation in important ways since its creation in 2007," said Ann Ardis, dean of the College of Humanities and Social Science. "We are extremely proud of its work and delighted that its new director is a 鶹Ƶ alum."