Assessing the Usefulness of Vulnerability Assessments and Other Science-based Tools in Climate Adaptation
Assessing Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation in the Great Basin: A Policy Perspective on Resource Managers and the Use of Science in Decision Making (Funded Jointly by the Northwest CSC and Southwest CSC)
This project aimed to contribute to effective decision making in the region for the scientific community and general public. Resource managers in the Great Basin are dealing with significant questions regarding how best to make decisions in the natural and human systems in response to climate change. Vulnerability assessments and other tools are used for climate change adaptation, but their effectiveness is not widely understood or examined. Assessing these tools for their utility and for their ability to translate science into accessible and available information for users, including the general public, is critical for the future viability and sustainability of the Great Basin. This project applied social and policy methods to these [...]
Summary
This project aimed to contribute to effective decision making in the region for the scientific community and general public. Resource managers in the Great Basin are dealing with significant questions regarding how best to make decisions in the natural and human systems in response to climate change. Vulnerability assessments and other tools are used for climate change adaptation, but their effectiveness is not widely understood or examined. Assessing these tools for their utility and for their ability to translate science into accessible and available information for users, including the general public, is critical for the future viability and sustainability of the Great Basin. This project applied social and policy methods to these important questions. Findings in scientific and lay terms will be made available to decision makers and the general public in a variety of formats.
This project was funded jointly by the Northwest and Southwest CSCs.
The availability and use of climate science for decision making involves a complex dynamic between science provider and potential user. This research will focus on the Great Basin region of the Western United States and develop a comprehensive understanding of the use of climate science in the region, the availability and utility of vulnerability assessments (VAs) for decision makers, and the science and information gaps that continue to exist. This proposal directly addresses the North West Climate Science Center Agenda Theme 4: Vulnerability and Adaptation. The availability of VAs and similar tools are growing and range in type from general and conceptual frameworks, scenario planning, to more advanced index based tools. The increased availability of tools and problems with their use makes the research proposed here timely. Social and policy science perspectives and methods (interviews, surveys, case studies) are applied on the use and understanding of science in this region in regard to climate change and non-climate change stressors. Annual reports, white papers and professional publications will be produced and methods and results will be generalizable beyond the study area. An extensive array of collaborators have agreed to provide contacts and insights into the study area and issues.
type
Grant Award Number
value
G14AP00097
projectStatus
Completed
Budget Extension
annualBudgets
year
2014
fundingSources
amount
42470.0
source
NW CSC
amount
20000.0
source
SW CSC
totalFunds
62470.0
year
2015
fundingSources
amount
28041.0
source
NW CSC
amount
20000.0
source
SW CSC
totalFunds
48041.0
totalFunds
110511.0
Preview Image
Sunflower Flats wildflowers, Great Basin - Credit: Shanell Owen, USFWS