This project will build on a nascent Landscape Connectivity Network facilitated by Pepperwood and comprised of land trusts, parks and open space districts, with state and federal land managers. In partnership with UC Berkeley, the network will build a place-based decision support platform for prioritizing and implementing habitat connectivity projects on the ground across multiple jurisdictions. The product will be a science-based prioritization of critical habitat pinch-points co-created with local land managers that identifies threatened linkages in high value habitat corridors. Specific products generated will include a region-wide prioritization of threatened linkages complemented by linkage-specific portfolio reports that evaluate site-specific benefits in terms of climate adaptation, plant and animal species conservation, and watershed integrity. These portfolio reports will provide critical support in advancing on-the-ground funding and implementation, primarily on the part of private land trusts and public open space districts, organizations that play a critical role in securing linkages between large state and federally-owned protected lands. The results will thus empower local agencies to work more effectively on-the-ground to enhance connectivity and climate resilience in the Mayacamas to Berryessa Coast Ranges.
