California has approved a multimillion-dollar investment to establish a climate research institute spanning the University of California system, with UC Irvine expected to contribute to its work. State Assemblymembers Cottie Petrie-Norris and Jackie Irwin announced the funding at an event on the UC Irvine campus, where university leaders accepted a ceremonial check.
The amount is reported inconsistently: UC Irvine News describes the state investment as $38 million in one place and $38.2 million elsewhere, without reconciling the figures. Researchers from multiple UC campuses are expected to take part. UC Irvine researchers are expected to contribute expertise in wildfires, coastal issues, urban flooding and desert ecosystems, the announcement says.
The institute is intended to support research that can inform policy decisions and advance clean technologies. Organizers also say innovations could provide a basis for startups and contribute to California’s economy. The announcement says the organizers looked to the UC Institute for Transportation Studies as a model.
The transportation precedent and California’s climate outlook
The transportation network cited as a model has a long history: the California Legislature established the UC Institute for Transportation Studies in 1947, and its branches are now at Berkeley, UCLA, Davis and Irvine, according to the UC Institute of Transportation Studies. That history documents a cross-campus precedent, but does not establish that the climate institute will share its structure. For regional context, the California Climate Adaptation Strategy projects average maximum temperatures in the Los Angeles region will rise 4-5°F by mid-century and 5-8°F by late century. These are projections, not observed outcomes or findings of the new institute.
Lawmakers Point to Local Climate Risks
The lawmakers cited risks across California. Petrie-Norris recalled wildfires as well as king tides that have contributed to flooding and coastal erosion. Irwin pointed to residents of Malibu and Pacific Palisades, whom she said bore the worst of the early 2025 wildfires, according to the UC Irvine announcement.
Petrie-Norris, who represents California’s 73rd Assembly District, covering Costa Mesa, Irvine and Tustin, called the climate crisis “here, now and urgent” and said the institute could support sharper science and better-informed policymaking. Irwin, who represents the 42nd Assembly District, said research and dialogue with legislators are important to informing policy, the university reported.
UC Irvine Leaders Emphasize Research in Practice
Hal Stern, UC Irvine’s executive vice chancellor and provost, thanked the California Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom for their support, according to the UC Irvine announcement. He said meeting the state’s climate goals will require turning research into usable technologies and approaches, with legislators and local businesses helping put the work into practice.
Seth Cohen said the investment is important for supporting faculty, postdoctoral researchers and students working on climate issues, the announcement notes. Aileen Anderson is UC Irvine’s vice chancellor for research, according to the same report.
A Campus Collaboration Already Underway
The statewide institute follows UC Irvine’s Climate Collaboration, launched in 2025 to connect campus researchers with government agencies, communities, nonprofit organizations and industry. The collaboration is directed by Brett Sanders, a Chancellor’s Professor of civil and environmental engineering, according to UC Irvine’s Office of the Provost. Sanders said the state investment “positions us to lead” on complex climate challenges, according to UC Irvine News.
The Climate Collaboration's work spans wildfires, coastal erosion, urban flooding, and parks and greenspace projects aimed at improving regional air quality — addressing what the university calls some of California's most urgent climate resilience priorities. For the 2026-27 cycle, the provost's office announced four new Climate Collaboration projects covering urban cooling, heat and smoke risks during pregnancy, energy-grid resilience and seasonal precipitation prediction. That round of proposals drew participation from 47 faculty members across 12 schools and 18 academic departments, up from the inaugural cohort the year before, which was selected from 18 proposals representing faculty from 15 schools and 21 academic departments, the provost's office noted in a separate announcement.
Part of a Larger UC Research Push
The new institute joins a long history of UC multicampus research efforts. Since 2009, every corner of the University of California has played a role in advancing funded research through its multicampus research programs, according to the UC Office of the President, which notes that such partnerships unite expertise from all ten UC campuses, UC-managed national laboratories, the UC natural reserve system and agricultural research stations. Those multicampus programs have supported more than 1,500 faculty members, postdoctoral researchers and graduate students, including efforts like a project studying climate-resilient agriculture through materials science, botany and mechanical engineering.
An earlier example of that interdisciplinary model is CITRIS, founded at the University of California in 2001 to unite Berkeley, Davis, Merced and Santa Cruz under one research banner, according to UC Keep Researching. CITRIS has since seeded multicampus sustainability projects touching energy grids, agriculture, aviation, wildfire monitoring and water management.
Climate Research Funding Has Faced Turbulence
The new state money arrives against a backdrop of federal funding uncertainty for UC climate research. The EPA agreed to permanently restore about $19 million in grants supporting 24 University of California projects, including studies into wildfire-smoke health effects and water management, according to the Los Angeles Times. The University of California has separately described recent climate disruption in the state as including wildfires so large and hot they generate their own weather, record-breaking heat waves and a vanishing Sierra snowpack, with seven of the largest wildfires in state history occurring in just the past four years.
