Dr. Antonietta Capotondi, member and former co-chair of the CLIVAR Pacific Region Panel (PRP), was elected as a PICES WG-49 ex officio member and co-chair, representing CLIVAR. Dr. Capotondi has been actively involved in promoting the interdisciplinary cooperation between CLIVAR and the North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES) over the past years. In particular, from 2017 to 2020, she has been a co-chair, along with Dr. Ryan Rykaczewski and Dr. Shoshiro Minobe, representing CLIVAR, of the PICES WG-40 on Climate and Ecosystem Predictability, which aimed to identify, diagnose and quantify predictable responses of North Pacific marine ecosystems arising from regional- and large-scale climate processes.

Building on the success of WG-40, the newly established PICES WG49 on Climate Extremes and Coastal Impacts in the Pacific,  aims to promote a better understanding of the physical drivers of ocean extremes, and assess their predictability, in order to increase preparedness for the socioeconomic impacts resulting from these events. Also, as a co-chair for the newly approved CLIVAR Research Focus on Marine Heatwaves in the Global Ocean, Antonietta is expected to play a critical role in promoting the interaction and collaboration between CLIVAR and PICES on this particular topic of MHW and on broader aspects of climate extremes and their impacts, which are of interest for both organizations.