A Synthesis of Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation in Arctic Alaska

Communities, resource managers, and decision makers in Arctic Alaska are in need of scientific information to base important decisions related to anticipating and adapting to changes in temperature and precipitation. Since its inception in 2011, the Alaska Climate Science Center (AK CSC) and its partners have produced a variety of scientific products and datasets aimed at supporting this need and increasing climate change resilience in the Arctic. However, much of the information related to these activities is dispersed across many technical publications, and is often not readily accessible to those outside the research community. In an effort to make this science more available and accessible, the AK CSC is working with the University of Alaska - Fairbanks and Dr. Gary Kofinas to develop a summary of the “state of our knowledge” regarding climate change adaptation and resilience in Arctic communities. Ultimately, this summary will be published as a chapter in the forthcoming Arctic Resilience Assessment, a science-based report that aims to better understand the impacts of change in the Arctic. This summary addresses information needs within the Department of the Interior, as well as requests from numerous AK CSC stakeholders operating within the Alaska Region.