There is a general scientific understanding that forest management can be used to mitigate a portion of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions and that new forest management strategies will be required to adapt to climate change. However, it is still unclear how to apply scientific knowledge on climate change and forest response to region-specific, on-the-ground forest management strategies. In order to address how scientific understanding can be applied to help forests respond to climate change at local to regional scales, we assembled a team of experts for a two-day workshop with a focus on forests in northern Wisconsin. This workshop was part of a larger collaborative effort among scientists and managers of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, academic institutions, and state and federal agencies. Experts in forest ecology, climate change adaptation and mitigation, monitoring, and forest response to climate change were asked a series of three questions focused specifically on forests of northern Wisconsin: 1. How can we apply our current scientific understanding to adaptation, mitigation, and monitoring efforts? 2. What are our current gaps in understanding that impede progress in these areas? 3. What actions could we take to address these gaps?
Results/Conclusions Workshop participants were oriented to climate change and forest management issues specific to northern Wisconsin through written climate vulnerability and mitigation assessments developed prior to the workshop. At the workshop, additional background information on climate change and vegetation impact projections for northern Wisconsin was presented along with mitigation, monitoring, and adaptation concepts. The group then applied this information to address the three basic questions in smaller breakout groups. The group identified several areas where current knowledge could be applied to forest management and key areas where more scientific knowledge is needed. These insights will help provide a basis for a Climate Change Response Framework which will be incorporated into forest management planning on the Chequamegon Nicolet National Forest and other state and private forests in Northern Wisconsin.
