The Climate Impact Lab (CIL) is a research institution and a unique collaboration of climate scientists, economists, data engineers, and risk analysts from institutions like the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute (EPIC) and the University of California, Berkeley. Originating from a decade of research, the Lab was created to provide a data-driven roadmap for climate adaptation and to quantify the economic and social costs of global warming. A key problem it solved was producing the world's first empirically derived estimate of the Social Cost of Carbon (SCC), which monetizes the cost to society from each ton of carbon dioxide emitted.
The Lab's mechanism involves using a modular, bottom-up architecture called the Data-driven Spatial Climate Impact Model (DSCIM). This model integrates climate change damages across multiple sectors, generating localized projections across 25,000 geographic units globally. The research quantifies impacts on mortality, agricultural productivity, labor supply, energy demand, and coastal flooding risk. The CIL connects to global policy through its partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on the "Human Climate Horizons" platform and by providing data used by the International Monetary Fund and the U.S. Government.
The Lab recently underwent a significant change in March 2026, announcing an expanded mission to focus on developing a global playbook of data-driven adaptation strategies, particularly for the Global South. This new focus treats adaptation as a "co-equal partner" to mitigation, with Genevieve Maricle named the new Executive Director to lead this effort.