Assistant Professor University of Maine, Maine, United States
Temperate forests are a critical tool for the mitigation of global climate change through carbon storage and sequestration. These forests are important for buffering the effects of climate change within broader ecological systems too. For example, cooler temperatures in structurally complex forests, or relative to non-forested areas, may provide refuge for plant and animal species as external temperatures continue to rise. Our scientific understanding of forests’ climate resilience continues to grow, but this knowledge must be translated into management strategies. In this presentation, I will synthesize long-term and large-scale silvicultural studies from the northeast United States and what they teach us about northern temperate forests in the context of changing environmental and social conditions. With these studies as a foundation, I will discuss the balance between traditional forest management principles and evolving practices, and strategies for connecting with forestry practitioners and landowners for on-the-ground application of climate research.
