The Adaptation for Conservation Targets (ACT) Framework: A Tool for Incorporating Climate Change into Natural Resource Management

Abstract

As natural resource management agencies and conservation organizations seek guidance on responding to climate change, myriad potential actions and strategies have been proposed for increasing the long-term viability of some attributes of natural systems. Managers need practical tools for selecting among these actions and strategies to develop a tailored management approach for specific targets at a given location. We developed and present one such tool, the participatory Adaptation for Conservation Targets (ACT) framework, which considers the effects of climate change in the development of management actions for particular species, ecosystems and ecological functions. Our framework is based on the premise that effective adaptation of management to climate change can rely on local knowledge of an ecosystem and does not necessarily require detailed projections of climate change or its effects. We illustrate the ACT framework by applying it to an ecological function in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho, USA)—water flows in the upper Yellowstone River. We suggest that the ACT framework is a practical tool for initiating adaptation planning, and for generating and communicating specific management interventions given an increasingly altered, yet uncertain, climate.

Managing Protected Areas in Central and Eastern Europe Under Climate Change

“…Groves et al 2012); • reflecting potential effects of climate change in the design of wildlife corridors and adapting existing area networks (e.g. Vos et al 2008);…”

“…Cross et al 2012;European Commission 2012;Glick et al 2011a;. Building on this wealth of literature and intensive discussions a framework for the adaptation of conservation management in protected areas of Central and Eastern Europe was drafted.…”

Conclusions and Recommendations for Adapting Conservation Management in the Face of Climate Change

“…Baron et al 2009;Cross et al 2012;European Commission 2012;Glick et al 2011a;Hansen and Hoffmann 2011;Lawler 2009;Welch 2005). Building on this wealth of literature and intensive discussions a framework for the adaptation of conservation management in protected areas of Central and Eastern Europe was drafted.…”

“…However, there are also good reasons to include it as an individual step (e.g. Cross et al 2012;Rannow 2011).…”

“…Nevertheless, some species and systems may only be conserved through intensive interventions (Heller and Zavaletta 2009). If no actions are capable of achieving the stated objective, it may even be necessary to adapt and revise objectives (Cross et al 2012). Letting go of existing objectives and negotiating new aims will be a painful process for many conservationists.…”