Date: Wednesday, February 12, 2020

Location: 112 Wurster Auditorium

Lecture: 6:30pm

Adapting to rising sea levels using nature’s jurisdictions

Over the past decade, California and the Bay Area have deeply invested in understanding our vulnerabilities to climate change and sea level rise. Tougher discussions emerge when we are forced to ask ourselves, “What should we do about it? How do we organize ourselves to adapt equitably, and how do we make sure we don't leave future generations with a Bay lined with concrete walls?” A critical tool for addressing this challenge is a science-based framework for developing adaptation strategies that are appropriate for the diverse shoreline of the Bay and that take advantage of natural processes, and provides guidance for using nature-based options. Our work proposes such a framework- we call them Operational Landscape Units for San Francisco Bay. This talk will describe (1) the science behind our proposal to ask the Bay Area to plan using natural boundaries as opposed to traditional jurisdictions (2) provide examples of applications of the framework in several local and regional adaptation planning efforts throughout the Bay, and (3) thoughts on climate adaptation planning at larger scales.

Julie Beagle is SFEI’s Deputy Program Director of the Resilient Landscapes Program, and a lead scientist for the organization’s climate adaptation efforts. Her work focuses on adaptation to sea level rise using nature-based strategies, and integrating science and policy to provide short and long-term adaptation pathways for use in planning processes. She has led multiple focus areas at SFEI, including restoration work in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, and advancing the science of riparian habitats, including Sycamore Alluvial Woodlands. She has a bachelor of arts in history and environmental science from the Barnard College, and a Masters of environmental planning from UC Berkeley.