Calibrated Land Model Intercomparison Project (CalLMIP) – 1st Virtual Workshop

Calibrated Land Model Intercomparison Project (CalLMIP):

Planning & Development Workshop

CalLMIP planning committee

Natasha MacBean, Nina Raoult, Natalie Douglas, Jana Kolassa, Tristan Quaife, Istem Fer, Daniel Kennedy, Linnia Hawkins, Katie Dagon, Hannah Liddy

Virtual workshop dates

The workshop will consisted of three sessions, each lasting 1.5 hours. To accommodate participants across different time zones, we are offered two time options per session: one for the eastern US/EU time zones and one for the Western US/Australia/Asia time zones.

Session 1: Thursday, March 6 at 8:00-9:30 pm EST OR Friday, March 7 at 10:00-11:30 am EST (time zone converter)
Session 2: Wednesday, March 19 at 10:00-11:30 am EDT OR Wednesday, March 19 at 8:00-9:30 pm EDT (time zone converter)
Session 3: Tuesday, April 1st at 10:00-11:30 am EDT OR Tuesday, April 1st at 8:00-9:30 pm EDT (time zone converter)

Workshop overview

CalLMIP is a new initiative led by members of the Analysis and Integration of Modeling Earth Systems (AIMES) Land Data Assimilation Working Group and the International Land Modeling Forum (ILMF) Parameter Estimation Working Group.

This initiative is targeted at global-scale land models – i.e., land surface or terrestrial biosphere models that form part of earth system models, or intermediate complexity models and vegetation demographic models that are routinely run at global scale (for example for the global carbon budget).

The overall goals envisaged for CalLMIP are:

To quantify the reduction in inter-model spread as a result of parameter calibration for a wide range of variables (e.g., carbon and water stores and fluxes, aboveground biomass, soilC etc).
To encourage the use of uncertainty quantification methods for constraining parameter uncertainty in global land models.
To better understand and exchange knowledge on the variety of methods being used in global land model parameter calibration in order to identify best practices.

Workshop goals

Discuss the goals of the 1st stage of CalLMIP
Discuss the protocol, input files, data types/characteristics, sites and variables to be optimized in the first stage of the calibrated land model intercomparison.
Discuss the post-optimization analyses that could/should be performed.
Discuss future stages of the MIP and our vision for ultimate goals (e.g., to support the wide use of data-constrained model ensemble simulations for CMIP and TRENDY/GCB).

We anticipate tackling each goal in this order, with the second bullet taking up the majority of the time (especially in the first two workshops). However, this plan is subject to change as discussions evolve and as each goal builds off the other goals. We also anticipate that participating individuals/groups may have “homework” to do or offline discussions that may take place via email in between each session.

Who this workshop is targeting

Teams actively working on global land model parameter calibration (i.e., those with a parameter calibration system that is already developed, or at an advanced stage of ongoing developments), especially the researchers who will carry out the 1st stage CalLMIP experiments.

Note: we will arrange a webinar during Fall 2025 for those who are interested in CalLMIP but will not be participating in the 1st stage. During that webinar we will present the first stage protocol and also provide an opportunity for anyone interested in CalLMIP to provide feedback on the CalLMIP future plans and ultimate goals.

Thank you for joining!

From the workshop

Thank you to those who attended the Calibrated Land Model Intercomparison Project (CalLMIP): Planning & Development Workshop! Over the course of three sessions, we made a lot of progress toward developing the experimental protocol. For those who were unable to attend but want to learn more or be involved, you can do the following using the links below:

1) view a high-level draft of the protocol outlining the decisions made so far,

2) view the intro videos from the workshop,

3) sign up to the mailing list below to stay informed of future updates.

DRAFT protocol for CalLMIP

Please note that this draft applies only to Phase 1, where the focus is on maintaining a simple experimental design. The aim is to assess whether locally optimized parameters influence inter-model spread and model–data comparisons at the global scale, while also evaluating calibration performance across models.

Final protocol decisions will be made by the planning committee. Once finalized, we’ll share the protocol along with a participant table where you can add your name if you plan to take part in Phase 1.

Sign up using the ‘Expression of interest’ button below to stay up-to-date with CalLMIP developments.

Workshop videos

March 7, 2025 | CalLMIP Virtual Workshop | Session 1

March 19, 2025 | CalLMIP Virtual Workshop | Session 2

April 1, 2025 | CalLMIP Virtual Workshop | Session 3

Timeline for the 1st stage of CalLMIP

March/April 2025: 1st workshop to decide on protocol, data, sites etc.
Fall 2025: Webinar to present the first stage protocol and gather feedback on CalLMIP’s future plans and goals.
Summer 2025: Preparation of input and observation files and data harmonization by the MacBean lab for all modeling groups.
Fall 2025 – Summer 2026: 1st stage parameter calibration experiments carried out by individual modeling groups.
Presentation of 1st stage results at the 2nd Land Surface Modeling Summit (or equivalent meeting) and online webinar in summer 2026.