LCD Webinar: Scales, uncertainty, and island realities in Pacific Islands LCD
Channel: Conservation and Adaptation Resources Toolbox
Date: 2017-06-21

Presenter: 
Jeff Burgett, Science Coordinator, Pacific Islands Climate Change Cooperative

The Pacific Islands offer a number of contrasts with continental North America that affect the development of LCDs.  The Pacific Islands Climate Change Cooperative encompasses a huge ocean area peppered with small, unique islands.  Geographical features like island scale and the land-sea interaction, biological features like endemism and invasive species, and human factors such as institutional capacity and culture all influence the type and number of LCDs that are being developed.  Uncertainty in many forms is a key challenge, although, on the other hand, certainty is not necessarily beneficial.  Current efforts are reaching across institutional and cultural barriers to encourage island-scale conservation actions despite these challenges.

About the Presenter:
Jeff Burgett has been the Science Coordinator for the Pacific Islands Climate Change Cooperative (PICCC) since 2010.  Jeff is responsible for designing and administering a science development program to inform climate change adaptation of marine and terrestrial resource management with stakeholders, spanning diverse island cultures and jurisdictions.  He has a BA and Ph.D. from the University of Hawai’i, and an MSc from the University of Auckland, all with a focus on marine ecology.  Prior to his current position with PICCC, Jeff worked on endangered species management and population modeling, invasive species, avian disease, coral reef management, and environmental impact review.