Climate-Adaptive Population Supplementation Workshop: Sign Up By July 6th
We are delighted to invite the NE CASC community to an upcoming workshop on a new framework for climate adaptation in natural resource management: Climate-Adaptive Population Supplementation (CAPS). CAPS uses variation in climate-relevant traits within species to select a portfolio of cultivars/strains that suit the environmental conditions expected in the future under climate change. The workshop will be held in person on August 8th at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. It will discuss and refine the CAPS concept, exchange knowledge and perspectives among practitioners, and identify benefits of and barriers to CAPS application across taxonomic and management spheres.
To ensure that we include the diversity of perspectives needed to test and improve upon the CAPS concept, we are inviting a wide range of experts to participate in its evaluation through interviews and the workshop.
If you are interested in participating, please use this link to fill out a brief form by July 6th for full consideration.
Workshop space is limited. Participants will be chosen based on taxonomic expertise, management sector, and relevance to diverse applications of CAPS. Individuals chosen for the workshop will be notified of their selection no later than July 22nd and will also be asked to schedule a 30-minute pre-workshop conversation with a member of the CAPS Project team.
This workshop will launch a collaborative community of practice around CAPS and use open dialogue to 1) identify the benefits and barriers to CAPS across management traditions and taxonomic groups, and 2) co-develop a list of key considerations in designing a feasible CAPS program. All workshop participants will be invited to become contributing coauthors of a “How-To Guide” for managers interested in applying the CAPS concept in their work. Additional benefits of workshop attendance will include networking with a wide range of colleagues (agency, NGO, & academic), and feedback on how CAPS could contribute to meeting your priorities.
The workshop will follow the COVID-19 guidelines of the University of Massachusetts Amherst. All participants are expected to either have received full COVID-19 vaccination (including boosters, if necessary) or have a negative COVID-19 test result within 24 hours of arrival in Amherst. Masking is encouraged but not required. The meeting will be held indoors in the historic Old Chapel, which has a newly upgraded ventilation system to reduce transmission risk.
We hope that you will be interested in contributing your expertise by attending the workshop. Please feel free to suggest other potential attendees whose expertise would contribute to refining the CAPS approach by emailing the CAPS Project Team contact person, Amy Teffer, at @email. Questions about the workshop can also be directed to Amy Teffer.
The NE CASC CAPS Project Team
- Anthony D'Amato, University of Vermont
- Peter McIntyre, Cornell University
- Keith Nislow, U.S. Forest Service
- Amy Teffer, University of Massachusetts Amherst
