Going with the Flow: Conserving Resilient and Connected Landscapes

To track a rapidly changing climate, plants and animals must relocate to survive. In 2016, The Nature Conservancy completed an analysis of “Resilient and Connected Landscapes for Terrestrial Conservation”. This first-of-its-kind study maps climate-resilient sites, confirmed biodiversity locations, and species movement areas (zones and corridors) across Eastern North America. The study uses the information to prioritize a conservation portfolio that naturally aligns these features into a network of resilient sites integrated with the species movement zones, and thus a blueprint for conservation that represents all habitats while allowing nature to adapt and change. Dr. Patrick will provide an overview of the approaches used in developing this conservation portfolio and discuss how the data layers can be used to identify priorities for different conservation tactics including land protection and mitigating the effects of roads. The presentation will finish with looking at the role of our northern forests, including the White Mountains, in helping to conserve biodiversity at a continental scale in a changing world.

David Patrick is the Director of Conservation Programs for The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire. Dr. Patrick’s education includes a Bachelor’s of Science degree from the University of North Wales, an MSc. in Conservation Biology from the University of Kent, and a Ph.D. in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Maine, Orono. Prior to joining the Conservancy, David served as Director of the Center for Adirondack Biodiversity in upstate New York, where his research focused broadly on the effects of climate change on biodiversity.