Climate adaptation planning for plant collections and conservation
Climate adaptation planning for plant collections and conservation
Gayle M. Volk, USDA-ARS National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation, 1111 S. Mason St., Fort Collins, Colorado USA 80521<EMAIL_ADDRESS>Tara L. Moreau, University of British Columbia Botanical Garden, 804 SW Marine Drive, Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z4<EMAIL_ADDRESS>Learning Objectives
Explore how climate adaptation planning can be used to understand and prepare plant collections for a changing climate.
outline
- Introduction
- What is climate adaptation planning?
- Climate adaptation planning frameworks
- Conclusions
- References
- Acknowledgments
1. introduction
Planning and preparation for how climate change could impact plant genetic resource collections and food security is key to plant conservation and the future of agriculture. Forests, parks, gardens, municipalities, branches of the U.S. government, and many other organizations are considering how they are vulnerable to a changing climate. This information, as well as strategies to overcome those vulnerabilities, can be included in implementation plans. The process of assessing vulnerabilities and developing implementation plans is complex, both because a wide range of climatic conditions must be considered and because each organization experiences different risks and possible responses. Localized information and regional climate changes will vary depending on geographic regions and climates. For plant collections managers, risks and adaptation activities will work best when customized to the specific collections and operational systems.
2. what Is climate adaptation planning?
Climate adaptation planning involves understanding potential climate change impacts and vulnerabilities that might impact a given area, in this case, plant collections management. The goal is to identify strategies, approaches, and tactics to protect and maintain plant collections so that plant genetic resources for food and agriculture are secured for current and future generations.
3. Climate Adaptation Planning Frameworks
Planning for climate adaptation is important for making strategic decisions to ensure that ex situ collections are suitable for the future climates. Frameworks differ in their process, terminology, data sources, and more. For example, the United States government agencies have publicly released Climate Adaptation Plans. Similarly, the American Public Gardens Association has a website that provides examples of city Climate Adaptation Plans. In 2017, Botanic Gardens Australia & New Zealand and the Climate Change Alliance of Botanic Gardens published its ‘Landscape Succession Strategy’ for climate ready botanic gardens, and in 2022 its associated Toolkit, which supports botanical gardens in considering issues, challenges, and opportunities for effective landscape succession (Entwisle et al., 2017; Climate Change Alliance of Botanic Gardens, 2022a). Access to local and regional climate science information is important in pla