Strategies for adaptation to climate change in the Sonoran and Mojave deserts

In August 2012, 35 managers and biologists from protected areas in the U.S. and Mexican Sonoran and Mojave deserts met in Phoenix, Arizona to discuss management strategies to promote adaptation of natural communities and species in the region to climate change.

During the workshop participants learned about the results of a climate change vulnerability assessment of ten focal community types of the Sonoran and Mojave deserts and had the opportunity to provide feedback on the methods employed and results obtained from these assessments. They also worked together to document ecological stressors commonly affecting the focal communities within managed lands and discussed and identified specific, on-the-ground strategies for protected areas to reduce climate change impacts on natural communities.

A final report of workshop outcomes will be available in early October. To learn more, contact Desert LCC Coordinator Genevieve Johnson or SJV Science Coordinator Carol Beardmore.