This 12-part series tells a story about climate change climate change
Climate change includes both global warming driven by human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns. Though there have been previous periods of climatic change, since the mid-20th century humans have had an unprecedented impact on Earth's climate system and caused change on a global scale.

Learn more about climate change and its impacts on forest ecosystems and forest dependent wildlife species.

We will examine forest ecosystems and their composition and structure structure
Something temporarily or permanently constructed, built, or placed; and constructed of natural or manufactured parts including, but not limited to, a building, shed, cabin, porch, bridge, walkway, stair steps, sign, landing, platform, dock, rack, fence, telecommunication device, antennae, fish cleaning table, satellite dish/mount, or well head.

Learn more about structure under a changing climate, and the influence on wildlife populations and carbon dynamics. We will also share tools and management approaches to help facilitate forest and wildlife climate adaptation at both landscape and stand scales. 

Webinar Sponsors: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) - Forest Ecology Working Group (FEWG), Science Applications and Migratory Birds Programs, and the National Conservation Training Center (NCTC) are joining the USDA Forest Service and the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science (NIACS) in sponsoring this webinar series.  

Who should Attend: Biologists, foresters, land managers and planners, and other natural resource practitioners affiliated with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, other Federal, State, Tribal, and local government agencies, and non-government and private organizations, with an interest in the intersection of climate adaptation, forest ecology, and wildlife habitat management. 

Webinar Objectives: After engaging with the entire webinar series, participants will be able to:  

  • Communicate with peers and stakeholders about climate change impacts on forests ecosystems and forest – dependent wildlife 
  • Describe major climatic and ecological systems and the carbon cycling at work in forests within the conterminous U.S. and Alaska 
  • Discuss how forests and wildlife habitat may change and adapt under current and possible future climatic regimes  
  • Utilize analytic tools to evaluate and understand changing forest conditions and the impacts to wildlife under various climate scenarios  
  • Apply various climate adaptation planning frameworks and tools to promote How did we get to the current system and conditions? 

If you have any questions regarding this webinar series, please email jim_siegel@fws.gov.

Upcoming Webinars

Attendance at all presentations is highly recommended as each month’s topic builds upon the prior webinar.  This webinar series takes place on the 3rd Tuesday of each month from 1-2 PM ET.  Register to join us.

The recordings for this webinar series will be hosted by our webinar partner the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science (NIACS) at their Climate Change Response Framework website.

March 15, 2022 Special Webinar Presentation: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Climate Change Action Program and Nature-Based Solutions for Forest Adaptation

Speakers: Kurt Johnson, USFWS, Science Applications; Sara Ward, USFWS, Ecological Services

  • Introduction to the USFWS Climate Change Action Program
  • Overview of Nature based solutions
  • Natural infrastructure for forest adaptation
  • Natural climate solutions for forest adaptation and climate mitigation
  • FWS experiences and adaptation strategies
  • Set up and transition to new “Climate Adaptation for Forest - Dependent Wildlife Webinar Series”

April 19, 2022 Webinar 1 - Part 1: Setting the Stage – Climate Impacts | Climate Change Impacts on Forest Ecosystems

Speaker: Jim Vose, U.S. Forest Service

  • Broad overview similar to National Climate Assessment (NCA), projections, basic systems, etc.
  • Managing ecosystem resistance and resilience under changing climate and disturbance regimes

May 17, 2022 Webinar 2 - Climate Change Impacts on Wildlife

Speaker: Olivia LeDee, USGS and Midwest CASC

  • Broad overview of how climate change climate change
    Climate change includes both global warming driven by human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns. Though there have been previous periods of climatic change, since the mid-20th century humans have had an unprecedented impact on Earth's climate system and caused change on a global scale.

    Learn more about climate change     affects phenology, species reproductive success, life stages, habitat changes, etc.
  • Link changes in the biophysical environment to changes in fitness, abundance, and/or distribution of wildlife species and their habitat

June 21, 2022 Webinar 3 - Forest Carbon Cycle

Speaker: Todd Ontl, US Forest Service NIACS

  • Broad Overview of forest carbon management, carbon sequestration and storage and the intersection of forest disturbance, carbon and wildlife habitat management (achieving carbon goals as one of many habitat goals)
  • Effects of disturbance and active management on GHG emissions and net carbon stored in forests
  • Forest carbon pools through a wildlife habitat lens

July 19, 2022 Webinar 4 - Part 2 - Disturbance Ecology and Disturbance Regimes | Synergistic Effects of Multiple Stressors on forest resistance, resilience and response

Speaker: Sam Cushman, US Forest Service – Rocky Mountain Research Station

  • How multiple stressors synergistically influence ecosystem structure structure
    Something temporarily or permanently constructed, built, or placed; and constructed of natural or manufactured parts including, but not limited to, a building, shed, cabin, porch, bridge, walkway, stair steps, sign, landing, platform, dock, rack, fence, telecommunication device, antennae, fish cleaning table, satellite dish/mount, or well head.

    Learn more about structure     and function
  • How ecosystem resilience is manifested and dependent on spatial and temporal scales
  • Implications for forests, wildlife, and the people and agencies that manage them

August 16, 2022 Webinar 5 - Changing disturbance regimes and effects on wildlife using western ecosystems as an example of altered dynamics

Speaker: Jessica Halofsky, US Forest Service and Pacific Northwest Climate Hub

  • An example covering climate impacts and adaptation focusing on forests, drought, pests and wildfire in the West
  • Integrate concepts developed in the Western U.S. and applicable in other systems, such as: disease spiral, cascading effects, hot drought, mega-disturbance

September 20, 2022 Webinar 6 - Natural Disturbance Based Silvicultural Strategies, Adaptation and Wildlife Outcomes

Speaker: Tony D’Amato, University of Vermont

  • Overview of effects of climate on forests, how disturbances shape habitat through impacts on forest composition and structure.
  • Focus on natural disturbance based silvicultural strategies, how that aligns with adaptation, and wildlife outcomes
  • Ecological silvicultural systems

October 18, 2022 Webinar 7 - Part 3: Forest Adaptation Examples for Wildlife | Strategies for Forest Climate Adaptation Decision Making

Speaker: Dawn Magness, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Kenai NWR Alaska (POC Kurt)

  • Possible Trajectories for Vulnerable/Declining Forests
  • An example of taking ecosystems in different directions following the RAD framework in Alaska

November 15 Webinar 8: The Adaptation Workbook and Wildlife Adaptation Menu: Structured flexibility for management decisions

Speaker: Stephen Handler, US Forest Service and NIACS (POC Stephen – Speaker Confirmed)

  • An overview of the Adaptation Workbook process for developing custom-built adaptation plans
  • The Wildlife Adaptation Menu organizes management ideas from general strategies to specific approaches and tactics
  • Managers are using these tools to help meet their management goals for forest-dependent wildlife

December 13, 2022 (note second instead of third week) Webinar 9 - Persist in place or shift in space? Applying assessments of species' adaptive capacity to inform climate adaptation actions

Speaker: Lindsey Thurman, USGS and Northwest CASC (POC Stephen – Speaker Confirmed)

  • Assessing vulnerability to climate change in forest and riparian riparian
    Definition of riparian habitat or riparian areas.

    Learn more about riparian     systems
  • Adaptive capacity of wildlife populations
  • Refugia for stream associated species in timber managed landscapes

January 17, 2023 Webinar 10 - Climate Adaptation Strategies for Longleaf Pine Ecosystems

Speaker: Joshua Puhlick, The Jones Center

  • Application of ecological forestry concepts in the southeast and influence on wildlife species, and carbon
  • Role of fire, influence on wildlife, carbon stocks and sequestration, future challenges
  • Differences in carbon storage and sequestration between forest types (Northeast and Southeast)

February 21, 2023 Webinar 11 - Forest management for culturally significant wildlife 

Speakers: Eric Clark, Sault Ste. Marie Band of Lake Superior Chippewa; Keith Karnes, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe; Seth Moore, Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

  • A series of presentations featuring habitat management for wildlife species culturally important to tribes
    • Snowshoe hare, moose, other wildlife
    • Boreal forests

March 14, 2023 Webinar 12 - Pathways for climate informed forest management

Speaker: Chris Swanson, U.S. Forest Service-NIACS

  • Pathways for climate informed forest management in the context of both forest and wildlife objectives
  • Adaptive forest management using ecological forestry tools
  • Wrap up the series with a cautiously hopeful view