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A Path to Actionable Climate Science: Perspectives from the Field

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Abstract

The U.S. Department of the Interior Climate Science Centers (CSCs) work with natural and cultural resource managers and scientists to gather information and build tools needed to help fish, wildlife, and ecosystems adapt to the impacts of climate change. The CSCs prioritize the delivery of actionable science products (e.g., synthesized scientific information, maps, decision support tools, etc.) that are focused on key management priorities and co-produced by teams of scientists and managers. In the specific case of the Northwest CSC, we have been successful at promoting and supporting the co-production of actionable climate science at the individual project level, but it has been more difficult to replicate this success at the regional program level. Here we identify the most significant challenges in satisfying this mandate and propose the creation of a Science Advisory Panel to provide improved interface between resource managers and scientists engaged with the Northwest CSC.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful for the thoughtful and constructive suggestions from Robin O’Malley and two anonymous reviewers. AMM was supported by U.S. Department of the Interior Southwest Climate Science Center Award G13AC00326. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

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Correspondence to Nicole M. DeCrappeo.

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NMD and GAB declare that they have no competing interests. AMM has been funded through federal finanaical assistance awards by the DOI CSCs.

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DeCrappeo, N.M., Bisbal, G.A. & Meadow, A.M. A Path to Actionable Climate Science: Perspectives from the Field. Environmental Management 61, 181–187 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-017-0960-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-017-0960-y

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