The enterprise consisting of the USGS National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center (NCCWSC) and DOI Climate Science Centers (CSCs) is committed, in both its structure and operations, to a partnership-driven model. At the national and regional level, major guidance on priorities and activities is provided by ongoing interactions with stakeholders from the management, science, and public communities.
The Advisory Committee on Climate Change and Natural Resource Science (ACCCNRS) advises the Secretary of the Interior on the establishment and operations of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center (NCCWSC) and the Department of the Interior (DOI) Climate Science Centers (CSCs). The ACCCNRS consists of approximately 25 members from federal agencies; state and local governments; American Indian tribes and other Native American entities; nongovernmental organizations; academic institutions; and the private sector.
Stakeholder Advisory Committees (SAC) provide guidance and counsel to Climate Science Center (CSC) Directors concerning the resource management and decision-making contexts, capabilities, and challenges that require scientific support, and provide feedback concerning how effectively CSC products meet the needs of stakeholders. SACs also advise on the development and periodic updating of long term science agendas and other implementation and planning documents for the CSCs.
Climate Science Centers are located on and maintain core relations with universities, and university faculty, students, and staff conduct scientific activities at CSCs. Universities provide scientific capabilities, expertise, and infrastructure not readily available within the Federal science establishment. Both individual universities as well as multi-institution consortia serve as CSC partners.
Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, and other indigenous peoples and communities are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center (NCCWSC) and DOI Climate Science Centers (CSCs) are working with tribes and indigenous communities to better understand their specific vulnerabilities to climate change and to help them adapt to these impacts. This work is conducted through research projects, outreach events, training workshops, stakeholder meetings, youth internships and other coordination activities.
States are primary natural resource management partners with DOI. State governments participate on CSC Stakeholder Advisory Committees as well as on the ACCCNRS. CSCs also frequently collaborate with state fish & wildlife agencies.
Much of the information and tools provided by the CSCs are in response to the landscape-level priority needs identified by the Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs), as well as the cross-sector needs of other agencies and communities in a region. Each LCC brings together a group of partners to work collaboratively to identify best practices, connect efforts, identify science gaps, and avoid duplication through conservation planning and design.
Effectively responding to climate change requires ongoing engagement of multiple management partners as well as collaboration among science providers to ensure efficient use of resources. These partnerships require conscious development and dedicated resources. Resource management and science partners of the NCCWSC and CSCs include federal entities, tribal, state and local governments, the National Climate Assessment, nongovernmental organizations, private sector entities, and individual landowners.
