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Adaptation Workbook

Adaptation Workbook website
Developers: 

Northern Institute of Applied Climate Sciences (NIACS), U.S. Forest Service

Year released/updated: 
2019
Summary: 

Helps identify and tailor climate adaptation actions for given land management goals, with a focus on forests, agriculture and natural resources, at a location of interest in the Northeast or Midwest.

Geographic scope: 
Northeast, Midwest
Products: 
Requirements: 

A reasonable amount of time and good knowledge of the land of interest.

Conservation tasks: 
Conservation phases: 
Forest conservation goals
Climate adaptation interests
Most suitable for: 
  • Forest management actions responsive to climate change
Additional details 

The Adaptation Workbook is a structured process to consider the potential effects of climate change, and to design land management and conservation actions that can help prepare for changing conditions. The process is completely flexible to accommodate a wide variety of geographic locations, ownership types, ecosystems, land uses, management goals, and project sizes. The Adaptation Workbook walks users through a process for considering climate change impacts and identifying management actions that could be taken to directly adapt to climate change. This resource incorporates rigorous science, with information and “menus” of actions for forests (including urban forests) and agricultural lands. The output of the process is a comprehensive climate adaptation plan. This application is most useful for users with clear management goals and knowledge about their property or ecosystem of interest.

The developers have produced two quick guides (see Products section above) as entry points to Adaptation Workbook and the climate adaptation planning process, and for facilitating climate adaptation project discussions between those already familiar with the fuller, original version.

There are a large number of case studies that show how Adaptation Workbook has been used by forest conservation practitioners.

Learn more about the terms used in this tool profile from the Glossary.