CAF14-100

Morning Plenary - Making History: Beginning a New Era in Climate Change

Speakers: Ken Alex, Director, Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and Senior Advisor to Governor Jerry Brown; Mary Nichols, Chairman of the California Air Resources Board; Chief Ken Pimlott, Director, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection; Frances Spivy-Weber, Vice Chair, State Water Resources Control Board

Across the state, we are dealing with the impacts of climate change from sea level rise to extreme heat- climate change is happening. The current drought and unprecedented wildfire season highlight the types of challenges we can expect to face with increasing frequency. Californians are responding – support for government action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is at an all-time high. We’ve reached a decisive tipping point where growing public awareness and unavoidable urgency for response have converged. As a state, we are collectively looking these dangers and taking proactive steps to increase our resilience. Up and down the state, in communities large and small, from coastal waters to inland valleys to soaring mountains, Californians are taking steps at every level to implement our state’s shared vision and leading the way for other states and nations around the globe. We will need to continue our record of developing increasingly innovative solutions to protect our environment, support a sustainable economy, and improve our community’s quality of life.

MP3

$10.00

$10.00

CAF14-106

Shaking the Couch Cushions: Understanding and Creating Funding Streams for Climate Research and Adaptation

Speakers: Ashley Conrad-Saydah, Deputy Director for Climate Policy, CalEPA; Kevin Werner, Regional Climate Services Director, National Climatic Data Center, National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration; Guido Franco, Climate Change Research Lead, California Energy Commission; Randy Johnson, Ph.D., National Leader, USDA Climate Hubs; MODERATOR: Kristin Cooper-Carter, Owner, Grant Management Associates

An increasing number of local leaders are ready to take on adaptation, but funding these initiatives can be challenging. Funding for climate research and adaptation is competing against schools, police and libraries for scarce local resources. Obtaining climate research and adaptation funding can be difficult, but this session will provide you with an overview of the agencies with existing adaptation funding streams and insight into how funding is allocated. Learn about the agencies that support multi-disciplinary research assessments designed to foster the effective use of climate information for informed decision-making. If you would like to learn more about these programs, how you can participate, the goals and objectives that they are mandated to target and local funding opportunities, this session provides you with the tools and a better understanding of past funding trends and the current funding trajectory.

MP3

$10.00

$10.00

CAF14-213

The Role of California Rangelands I Adapting to Climate Change

Speakers: Pelayo Alvarez, Conservation Program Director, Defenders of Wildlife/California Rangeland Conservation Coalition; Wendell Gilgert, Rangeland Watershed Program Director, Point Blue Conservation Science; Wendy Millet, Education Foundation Director, TomKat Ranch; Leslie Roche, Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Plant Sciences, UC Davis; MODERATOR: Geoff Geupel, Emerging Programs and Partnerships Group Director, Point Blue Conservation Science

California rangelands cover approximately 40% of the state and provide multiple ecosystem services including food, forage, clean water, climate regulation and healthy wildlife populations. Rangeland science, policy and management have historically focused on optimizing livestock and forage production; however, society is placing growing importance on conservation goals. Balancing both agricultural production and conservation goals on these lands will be a central challenge in the face of climate change and uncertain economic and social conditions. Climate-change models project warming temperatures, more drought, more extreme rainfall with less snow accumulation, extreme changes in hydrographs and drier soils, all of which will impact the provision of ecosystem services from rangelands. In this session, we present recent efforts to increase the ecosystem services provided by California’s rangelands with an emphasis on climate change adaptation and some of the most urgent obstacles and win-win solutions for collaborative adaptive management.

MP3

$10.00

$10.00

Subtotal

$30.00