Implementation Update NE Climate Science Center Briefing and Listening Session U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Region 3, Bloomington, MN January 10, 2012 Rachel Muir, Interim Director, DOI NE Climate Science Center

Presentation Structure This is good news for nature resource Management! Why? When? (Official as of 12/2011) Where? Who? What (will the center do?) How? (structure, partnerships, finances) – And Listen!

Why Regional Climate Science Centers? Modeled, in part, after Fish and Wildlife Cooperative Research Units; Create linkages and synergy among University and Federal research; Strengthen linkages between fundamental and applied research and monitoring; Address the challenges of management at a regional scale – the appropriate and practical scale for climate studies.

Where and Who the Participating Universities was a competitive Process Directed by DOI Multiple university consortiums applied; Proposals were evaluated by the USGS Climate Mission Area and interviews conducted; Decisions were determined by a panel of DOI Resource Management Agencies; Results of the 2012 completion were announced by the Secretary October 7, 2011; Funding Approved by President’s Signature on 12/16/2011.

Climate Science Centers--Regions North Central Southeast South Central Southwest Northwest Northeast Alaska Pacific Islands Eight Regions, Initiated between 2010 and 2012 National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center

Northeast Region 22 states, 10 of the 21 LCC regions, over 130 million people and multi-ecoregions –Extreme gradients in environments and threats –Limited federal lands, pattern of ownership and management dominated by relatively small and privately owned parcels –Complex history of species extirpations, invasions, range extensions, and restorations –Complex climate predictions of regional impacts –Wide array of stakeholders

U NIVERSITY OF M ASSACHUSETTS A MHERST Richard Palmer (Lead PI) C OLLEGE OF M ENOMINEE N ATION Melissa Cook (Lead PI) C OLUMBIA U NIVERSITY Radley Horton (Lead PI) M ARINE B IOLOGICAL L ABORATORY Linda Deegan (Lead PI) U NIVERSITY OF M INNESOTA Anthony W. D’Amato (Lead PI ) U NIVERSITY OF M ISSOURI C OLUMBIA Frank R Thompson III (Lead PI) U NIVERSITY OF W ISCONSIN - M ADISON Lewis Gilbert (Lead PI)

U.S. Department of the Interior Climate Science Center

Mission Provide science-based tools and information needed to develop and implement management strategies to adapt to and/or prevent adverse impacts of climate change on fish and wildlife resources and their habitats, or Providing the science for natural and cultural resource adaptation to climate change.

Goals Partnerships with natural resource managers to address their highest priority science needs; Partnerships with the scientific community to develop needed information and tools; Delivery of robust tools and information at applicable scales directly to resource manager; Focus on climate change adaptation in the context of other actions/stresses, etc.

Achieving Goals Through Coordinated Management NE-CSC Director Stakeholder Advisory Council (SAC) Science Implementation Panel (SIP) Consortium Research Council and University Leads

NORTHEAST CLIMATE SCIENCE CENTER (NE-CSC) Management will engender – Engaged stakeholders (Federal, State, Tribal, NGOs, …..) Innovative, practical and stakeholder identified research Strong leadership from the primary research campus Sustainable partnerships between each member of the Consortium

Adaptive Management Research Institutions Participation USGS, LCCs, others Global Climate Models Monitoring and Feedback Local/Regional Information Ecological Understanding Forecasts of Ecol Response

Focus Ecosystems/Habitats for the Northeast/Midwest Climate Adaptation Research and Monitoring for Northeast and Midwest Habitats: Urban Coasts and Oceans* Agricultural Forested and Montane Freshwater Prairies and Plains *including the Great Lakes

Climate Change Adaptation Model and Interaction with Partners Adaptation needs met: changes in policy, management, etc. Monitoring and data collection Science and model development Syntheses and assessments Development of analytic and decision- making tools Planning, analysis, and decision-making Agencies, states, local governments, tribes, NGOs, & private landowners CSCs LCCs

Getting Down to Business – Near- Term Tasks Begin development of science plan for the CSC – a bottoms up, partner-driven process achieved through outreach activities; Establish interim Advisory Council to begin establishing protocols for final Council and identifying Regional Science Priority Needs. Partners support Interim Director in consultation with Consortium members to identify and fund priorities for 2011 cycle.

Direct Financial Support Five year budget as currently planned: –$7.5 Million projected for 5 years; –One year (2012) funding -- $1.5 million to Universities for facility, post-docs, grad and undergrad with research directed toward partner-driven needs; –First year – Approximately $.6 million directed toward research and outreach to be obligated by 6/2012.

Request to Partners Identify near-term and long term climate science needs; Collaborate with partners, (agencies, LCCs Joint Ventures, Fish Habitat Partnerships) in finding shared science needs: Provide forums for outreach; Participate in development of interim and final advisory council and science teams.

Points of Contact Points of Contact for DOI – NE –CSC: Rachel Muir – Interim Director Richard Palmer, Principal Investigator University of Massachusetts On the web -- csc/section-4-1http:// csc/section-4-1