Partnering with the Okanagan Collaborative Conservation Program, we continue to work together on Conservation Planning for Climate Change in the Thompson Okanagan, a multi-year initiative to connect Indigenous knowledge and land uses with climate change modelling to support sustainable land use decision-making.

By incorporating a Two-Eyed Seeing approach, the TNCC is working with Elders and Knowledge Keepers to map locations where culturally important lands are found within the project area while investigating how the distribution of wetlands and grasslands in the Thompson-Nicola region may be impacted by climate change. To further identify climate-impacted wetlands and grasslands, researchers at UBC are working to develop a predictive model for mapping the type and condition of these ecosystems using satellite remote sensing and digital topographic data.

This summer, the team will be conducting field surveys to help refine the predictive models which, once finalized, will guide regional efforts to develop policy and land use practices to support climate-informed conservation planning.