GNLCC Ecological Connectivity...
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s collaborative conservation matures, the Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) Network has the opportunity to generate new conservation solutions that cross boundaries to address big challenges. The Great Northern LCC ecological connectivity project seeks to marry on-the-ground action with landscape-level vision to build resilience in the face of change in the Great Northern geography. The Great Northern Landscape Conservation Cooperative (GNLCC) geography is home to some of the most intact landscapes, wild mountains, and iconic megafauna found in the United States or Canada. These lands, and the natural bounty they sustain, are a bi- national treasure. But as human populations grow, habitats shrink, and climate shifts, this incredible region faces increasing threats. To safeguard our natural resources against these changes, we must provide ecological connectivity—the flow of species and ecological processes across landscapes. Connectivity between protected areas has been identified as the single most important action for successful adaptation to climate change. Pronghorn, Antilocapra americana, are exemplary migrators, often traveling hundreds of miles each year to meet their nutritional needs. The Great Northern geography stretches across a huge swath of western North America, providing vital corridors for important species. Map: Meredith McClure. GNLCC Ecological Connectivity Project The Ecological Connectivity Project seeks to leverage the GNLCC’s diverse stakeholders and leadership to create and support a permeable landscape with connections that support species movement, gene flow, population migration, dispersal, life history, and biophysical processes. The Project addresses connectivity conservation across multiple scales: A “wide-angle” view of priorities for regional connectivity will inform, and be informed by, a collection of bottom-up strategies from local partnerships. The tools and resources for managers and stakeholders to effectively bridge these scales will also be compiled and shared. A visualization of the relationships among these components may be found in the following chart. A
Transcript of GNLCC Ecological Connectivity...
scollaborativeconservationmatures,theLandscapeConservationCooperative(LCC)Networkhastheopportunityto
generatenewconservationsolutionsthatcrossboundariestoaddressbigchallenges.TheGreatNorthernLCCecologicalconnectivityprojectseekstomarryon-the-groundactionwithlandscape-levelvisiontobuildresilienceinthefaceofchangeintheGreatNortherngeography.TheGreatNorthernLandscapeConservationCooperative(GNLCC)geographyishometosomeofthemostintactlandscapes,wildmountains,andiconicmegafaunafoundintheUnitedStatesorCanada.Theselands,andthenaturalbountytheysustain,areabi-nationaltreasure.Butashumanpopulationsgrow,habitatsshrink,andclimateshifts,thisincredibleregionfacesincreasingthreats.Tosafeguardournaturalresourcesagainstthesechanges,wemustprovideecologicalconnectivity—theflowofspeciesandecologicalprocessesacrosslandscapes.Connectivitybetweenprotectedareashasbeenidentifiedasthesinglemostimportantactionforsuccessfuladaptationtoclimatechange.
Pronghorn,Antilocapraamericana,areexemplarymigrators,oftentravelinghundredsofmileseachyeartomeettheirnutritionalneeds.
TheGreatNortherngeographystretchesacrossahugeswathofwesternNorthAmerica,providingvitalcorridorsforimportantspecies.Map:MeredithMcClure.
GNLCCEcologicalConnectivityProjectTheEcologicalConnectivityProjectseekstoleveragetheGNLCC’sdiversestakeholdersandleadershiptocreateandsupportapermeablelandscapewithconnectionsthatsupportspeciesmovement,geneflow,populationmigration,dispersal,lifehistory,andbiophysicalprocesses.TheProjectaddressesconnectivityconservationacrossmultiplescales:A“wide-angle”viewofprioritiesforregionalconnectivitywillinform,andbeinformedby,acollectionofbottom-upstrategiesfromlocalpartnerships.Thetoolsandresourcesformanagersandstakeholderstoeffectivelybridgethesescaleswillalsobecompiledandshared.Avisualizationoftherelationshipsamongthesecomponentsmaybefoundinthefollowingchart.
A
ConnectivityStrategyModel
TheConnectivityStrategyconsistsofintegratedtop-downandbottom-upapproachesthatprovidebeneficialprocessesandoutcomes.
ARegionalPerspectiveTheregionalperspective,ortop-downstrategy,usesspatialmodelstobetterunderstandconnectivityamonglarge,intact,protectedlandsviathemostnaturalroutesavailable.Thesemodelswillserveasproxiesfortheconnectivityneedsofspeciesthataresensitivetohumanimpactsonthelandscape,but,perhapsmoreimportantly,theyrepresentthemostintactconnectionsleftacrosstheGNLCC.
IntegratingLocalActionConservationactionsoccuratlocalscales,yettheyimpactregionalconnectivity.Amulti-facetedapproachisthusbeingpursuedtobuildecologicalconnectivityfromthe‘bottom-up.’Thebottom-upstrategyincludes:
1. DataAtlas:AcollectionofavailablegeospatialconnectivitydatafoundacrosstheentireGNLCCprovidesuser-friendlymapsandinformationcapturingwhatweknowaboutconnectivityinanygivenareaofinterest.
2. ConservationToolsandActionsMatrix:The
matrixwillsummarizetoolsavailabletopractitionersthatsupportconnectivitybyjurisdiction,typeofaction,scale,andmore.Itwillidentifyon-the-groundactionsstakeholdersaretaking,andwillactasaresourceforcoordination.
3. FocalConnectivityAreas:Areasthatofferparticularconnectivityvalueorarethefocusofexistingcollaborativeconnectivityeffortshavebeendelineatedtohelpstructurecoordinationoflocalaction.
4. LocalWorkshops:Workingwithlocalagencymanagers,landowners,andotherstakeholdersiskeytoensuringthatprojectworkisrelevantandapplicableontheground.SeveralworkshopsarebeingheldinfocalareastobuildrelationshipsandconnectstakeholderswithavailableGNLCCtools.
Ultimately,theProjectwillintegratethesebottom-upandtop-downapproachestocreateaGNLCC-wideconnectivitystrategy.Developmentofthisstrategyisnotmerelyanoutcome,but,importantly,aprocessthatwillprovidetoolsandresourcesforpractitioners,influencemanagementculture,highlightactionsandgaps,andchannelresourcestotheeffectiveconservationofecologicalconnectivity.Thisstrategywillsupportapermeablelandscapewiththeecologicalconnectionsnecessarytoadapttothechangesitisconfronting.
TolearnmoreabouttheEcologicalConnectivityProject,pleasevisit:
https://sites.google.com/site/gnecoconnectivityorcallMellyReuling,CenterforLarge
LandscapeConservationat406-586-8082
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