About CFAN
CFAN was founded in 2006 by Judith Curry and Peter Webster and launched under Georgia Tech’s VentureLab program. Our objective was to translate cutting-edge weather and climate research into forecast products that support the mitigation of weather and climate risks. Our initial opportunities and clients motivated the development of innovative extended-range forecasts of extreme weather events. We recognized early that the key to market adoption was working with our clients to evolve our forecast solutions to support effective decision-making. In recent years, CFAN has responded to growing needs for more realistic scenarios for regional climate change on decadal time scales than can be provided by global climate models.
CFAN’s team is active in advancing novel ideas and approaches in weather and climate services. We are recognized as innovators in pushing the boundaries of effective forecasting and advancing the understanding of weather and climate prediction and predictability.
CFAN’s founders have built a team with rich expertise in the core fields of meteorology, climatology, mathematical and computer sciences, and decision support. This expertise is complemented by customer and operations support teams that support our clients’ needs around the globe.
CFAN Profiles
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CFAN: Empowering Businesses to Manage Weather and Climate Risks With Innovative Forecast Tools. CEO Time [link]
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Providing the Intelligence You Need to Manage Weather and Climate Risks: Climate Forecast Applications Network. CIO Bulletin [link]
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Judith Curry: The 10 Most Admired Women Leaders in Business, Fortune Business Review [link]
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Ramping up the Accuracy of Weather Forecasting, Energy Review [link]
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Innovative Solutions for Managing Climate Risks, Aspioneer [link]
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Developing Innovative Weather and Climate Forecast Tools, Applied Technology Review [link]
Our Team
Judith Curry
President and Founder
Dr. Judith Curry is President and co-founder of CFAN. Following an influential career in academic research and administration, Curry founded CFAN to support the management of weather and climate risk. She is Professor Emerita at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where she served as Chair of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences for 13 years. Curry is a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Geophysical Union. She is frequently called upon to give Congressional testimony and serve as an expert witness on matters related to weather and climate. Curry received a Ph.D. in Geophysical Sciences from the University of Chicago.
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Peter Webster
Chief Scientist and Founder
Dr. Peter Webster is Chief Scientist and co-Founder of CFAN. Dr. Webster is Professor Emeritus at Georgia Tech. Webster’s research on tropical meteorology and climate dynamics has been recognized by numerous awards from the American Meteorological Society, the Royal Meteorological Society, and the American Geophysical Union. Webster recently served as President of the American Geophysical Union Atmospheric Sciences Section. He has actively worked with developing countries and development banks in Asia to reduce vulnerability to extreme weather events. Webster received a Ph.D. in Meteorology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Violeta Toma
Vice President,
Forecast Product Development
Dr. Violeta Toma oversees all of CFAN's forecast product development. She leads the overall effort for CFAN’s energy forecast products. Prior to joining CFAN in 2010, she was an air quality consultant at Trinity Consulting. Her expertise included Air Dispersion Modeling, New Source Review (NSR) permitting and regulatory applicability analyses for a variety of industries including Renewable Electricity Generation. Prior to coming to the U.S., Toma was a Meteorologist at the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology, Romania. Toma received a Ph.D. in Atmospheric Sciences from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Mark Jelinek
General Manager,
Research Meteorologist
Mark Jelinek's broad range of responsibilities at CFAN builds upon decades of business and technology experience. He has held business development positions with IBM, AppliedTheory, and KPMG Consulting. He has also successfully started and developed two companies: Convergence Zone, an internet service / web development company; and CREATECH, a catalyst in the emerging sector of innovation, patenting and technology transfer in South America. His expertise includes tropical cyclones, snowpack, hydrology, big data and analytics. He received a M.S. in Atmospheric Sciences from the Georgia Institute of Technology and recently earned a Sustainability and Climate Risk (SCR®) Certification from GARP
Jim LeMunyon
Manager,
Business Development
Jim LeMunyon oversees CFAN’s business expansion strategy, strategic partnerships, marketing and sales. LeMunyon is a technology company entrepreneur with executive experience, technical background and extensive business development record. He was co-founder and president of Sterling Semiconductor, which was acquired by Dow Corning in 2003. LeMunyon's professional experience includes working as the Chief of Staff for Congressman Ed Zschau and Deputy Assistant Secretary -- U.S. Department of Commerce. He recently served four terms in the Virginia House of Delegates. LeMunyon received a M.S. in Meteorology from the University of Wisconsin - Madison.
JJ Miller
Manager,
Information Technology
As Manager of Information Technology, JJ Miller supervises CFAN’s software engineers and is responsible for the system architecture, efficiency and reliability of CFAN’s operational forecast systems. He is the lead on translating research into forecast operations for CFAN’s tropical cyclone products. Prior to joining CFAN, Miller was a Research Associate at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, applying deep learning and artificial intelligence to interpreting satellite observations. Miller received a M.S. in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of Alabama-Huntsville.