Meet Dr. Kris

Dr. Kris Wilson is considered an international expert in the communication of climate change science and has presented his research in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Brazil, Great Britain, France, Wales and Mexico. Dr. Wilson spent more than a decade working in television as an award-winning news director, executive producer, anchor, reporter, and weather anchor.

In addition to his professional experience, he holds a doctorate in geography from the University of Colorado at Boulder (1993) specializing in climate change and geographic education and a master's degree from Ohio State University (1986), where he was a Kiplinger Fellow and specialized in environmental journalism.

“Dr. Kris” has been recognized for outstanding teaching at four universities, including winning the prestigious 2015 University of Texas Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award and as a finalist for the College of Communication Teaching Excellence Award. In 2012 Dr. Wilson was elected Fellow to The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) for "his pioneering research....and excellence in teaching science communicators."  He has travelled extensively in Australia and has many journalism and science contacts Down Under.

Research

Ideology Trumps Meteorology: Why Many Television Weathercasters Remain Unconvinced of Human-Caused Global Warming. Electronic News, 2012.

Trouble in the Tropics: Communicating the Science of Hurricanes on TV. Electronic News, 2011.

Television Weathercasters as Station Scientists. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, December 2008.

Television Weathercasters as Prominent Science Communicators. Public Understanding of Science, January 2008.

Seals of (Dis)approval: Television Weathercasters Debate the Value of Voluntary Credentials. National Weather Digest, December 2006.

Forecasting the Future: How Television Weathercasters' Attitudes and Beliefs About Climate Change Affect Their Cognitive Knowledge on the Science. Science Communication, December 2002.

Communicating Climate Change Trough the Media: Predictions, Politics and Perceptions of Risk. In Environmental Risks and the Media.