Expressions of Intent for International Polar Year 2007-2008 Activities

Expression of Interest Details

PROPOSAL INFORMATION

CANADA #241: Adapting to Rapid Social and Ecological Change: Linking the Southwest Yukon to the Circumpolar North  (Adapting to Rapid Social and Ecological Change)

Outline
Regions across the Circumpolar North are facing unprecedented levels and rates of change and there is clearly a need for a deeper understanding of the impacts of such change. There is an equal need for the development and implementation of ways for northern societies to utilize this knowledge in regional planning and decision-making; yet a large gap exists between our knowledge of change and the use of this knowledge in environmental management and governance. Moreover, studies have demonstrated significant variability in the effects of change, as well as in the adaptive responses of human societies. This suggests that the use and application of knowledge pertinent to one region in the management and governance of another region is a tenuous prospect and that place-based information is not only beneficial, but necessary in facilitating appropriate and successful adaptation to change. The question that remains, then, is this: How can northern communities improve their knowledge base, ensure that it is given full and due consideration in planning and decision making, while at the same time making both tasks locally and regionally relevant? We propose a transdisciplinary study to address this question that will proceed via two main components: 1. Kluane Regional Case Study: The Kluane region, Yukon, has undergone rapid social and ecological change in recent decades, including the settlement of Aboriginal land claims, forest transformation as a result of a massive insect epidemic, and significant climatic change. Such nonlinear change is projected to continue and presents substantial challenges to regional inhabitants and institutions. There is a rich history of scientific research in the region, plus numerous efforts to document traditional ecological knowledge. Such a broad baseline of information makes this situation essentially an involuntary experiment that can offer unique insight into the resilience, rapid transformation, and adaptive capacity of integrated social-ecological systems. Still, as in other regions across the North, the connections between science, management and governance are weak. Our core project aims to use the Kluane region as a case study to explore how those connections can be strengthened. We envision an interdisciplinary approach that involves integration of: (i) a region-wide synthesis of scientific data, traditional knowledge, and other information to construct a comprehensive picture of past and current social-ecological environments; (ii) analysis of institutional and community responses to climate and other sources of change; (iii) forecasts of future landscape and land use change under different scenarios, some of which will be spatially explicit; and (iv) exploration of appropriate frameworks for utilizing this information in improving community and regional adaptation. Such an investigation must have local involvement and we foresee active participation by community members and resource management institutions in all of these activities. 2. Knowledge Transfer Among Circumpolar Regions: Guided by an assessment matrix (attached as IPYmatrix4.pdf), we will conduct a structured series of comparisons between the Kluane region and other circumpolar regions to examine questions about the transferability of results and how to make valid cross-case comparisons. Working with individuals or groups at those other sites, we will formulate and assess initial questions about how knowledge is perceived, communicated, shared, and ultimately used by different actors in circumpolar policy processes at various institutional scales. We will then iteratively develop and test more refined hypotheses based on those emergent questions

What significant advance(s) in relation to the IPY themes and targets can be anticipated from this project?
This project’s transdisciplinary systems perspective represents an application of ideas at the frontiers of both social and natural sciences, and will yield greater understanding of the status of- and change and adaptation in- the polar environment and circumpolar human societies. Regionally, this work will connect the Kluane region’s substantial scientific legacy with current policy processes. More broadly, this project will foster a collaborative network of circumpolar sites coping with rapid change, with explicit focus on human dimensions of such problems. Finally, the four principal investigators are emerging Canadian scholars with demonstrated interdisciplinary experience and commitment to northern research; this undertaking will unify and strengthen the experience and professional relationships that each of us has acquired.This project’s transdisciplinary systems perspective represents an application of ideas at the frontiers of both social and natural sciences, and will yield greater understanding of the status of- and change and adaptation in- the polar environment and circumpolar human societies. Regionally, this work will connect the Kluane region’s substantial scientific legacy with current policy processes. More broadly, this project will foster a collaborative network of circumpolar sites coping with rapid change, with explicit focus on human dimensions of such problems. Finally, the four principal investigators are emerging Canadian scholars with demonstrated interdisciplinary experience and commitment to northern research; this undertaking will unify and strengthen the experience and professional relationships that each of us has acquired.

What international collaboration is involved in this project?
We forsee potential collaboration with researchers in all circumpolar countries, and likely also from non-polar nations. Indeed, our assessment matrix was developed specifically to facilitate broad collaboration. To date, initial contacts have been made with: • Per Olsen- UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Program Coordinator, Sweden • Human Dimensions of the Arctic System (HARC) research group, USA

FIELD ACTIVITY DETAILS

Geographical location(s) for the proposed field activities:
Kluane region, southwest Yukon: including Kluane National Park, the community of Haines Junction, and the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations Traditional Territory. Our comparative case study framework allows the addition of further case study locations as appropriate researchers and sites are identified over time.

Approximate timeframe(s) for proposed field activities:
Arctic: March 2007- March 2009            
Antarctic: n/a

Significant facilities will be required for this project:
None required.

Will the project leave a legacy of infrastructure?
No physical infrastructure legacy is proposed, though capacity-building efforts and local participation in this research will leave a positive social legacy in the region. See section 3.4 for a discussion of our proposed digital legacy.

How is it envisaged that the required logistic support will be secured?
Commercial operator
Own support
Other sources of support

Logistical requirements in the Kluane region will be met through local operators, government agencies, and the Arctic Institute of North America’s Kluane Lake Research Station. Researchers at other participating sites will be responsible for their own logistics.

Has the project been "endorsed" at a national or international level?
No

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND STRUCTURE

Is the project a short-term expansion (over the IPY 2007-2008 timeframe) of an existing plan, programme or initiative or is it a new autonomous proposal?


This project is an extension and integration of ongoing research by the principal investigators, including: • our four current Ph.D. dissertation projects, three of which take place in the southwest Yukon and two of which include other northern study sites • Forest Management in a Changing Climate: Building the Environmental Information Base for the Southwest Yukon, funded by Environment Canada’s Northern Ecosystem Initiative • Climate Change Decision Making Centre, funded by the National Science Foundation

How will the project be organised and managed?
The Kluane Regional Case Study will be managed directly by the four principal investigators. Regional participatory processes will be designed and implemented with local input so as to be both scientifically robust and locally acceptable. The Knowledge Transfer Among Circumpolar Regions component will be organized as a flexible network of case studies overseen by a Project Steering Committee, who will: i.) ensure that each case study contributes to a set of common research objectives, and ii.) coordinate evaluation and learning across case studies. Each case study will have a representative on the Steering Committee. Researchers at each participating site will secure and manage funding for their own individual projects. Communication between researchers and case studies will be facilitated by a project website and database (see section 3.4) and an annual research forum.

What are the initial plans of the project for addressing the education, outreach and communication issues outlined in the Framework document?
Existing research and planning partnerships with the Northern Climate ExChange, Alsek Renewable Resource Council, and Kluane National Park Management Board will be further developed around specific outreach products including community workshops, creation of plain-language documents, and the Northern Climate ExChange’s southwest Yukon climate change website.

What are the initial plans of the project to address data management issues (as outlined in the Framework document?
A key digital legacy will be expansion of an existing website project funded by Environment Canada’s Northern Ecosystem Initiative. This project proposes to add a searchable database of methods and results from all study sites, based on the attached case study matrix (IPYmatrix4.pdf).

How is it proposed to fund the project?
We plan to undertake the Kluane Regional Case Study with either the national funding agencies’ IPY support, or with our own individual research funding sources. However, the Knowledge Transfer Among Circumpolar Regions component is contingent upon receiving national funding agency IPY support.

Is there additional information you wish to provide?
None

PROPOSER DETAILS

PhD Candidate Douglas Clark
Wilfrid Laurier University, Department of Geography & Environmental Studies
75 University Avenue West
Waterloo, Ontario
N2L 3C5
Canada

Tel: (519) 747-4358
Mobile: no
Fax: (519) 725-1342
Email:

Other project members and their affiliation