Climate Change and Native Americans in the Southwest US

This webinar was held as a part of the Climate Change Science and Management Webinar Series, a partnership between the USGS National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center and the FWS National Conservation Training Center. Webinar Description: Native American tribes throughout the Southwest are vulnerable to climate change due to intimate relationships with the environments and landscapes upon which their cultures, traditions, and livelihoods depend. The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe in Nevada is deeply connected physically, culturally, and spiritually to Pyramid Lake, the endangered cui-ui fish (Chasmistes cujus), and the threatened Lahontan cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki henshawi). This collaborative research effort addresses the need for climate change adaptation research in the Great Basin which incorporates tribal perspectives. An investigation of the Tribe's vulnerabilities, thresholds, and resiliencies was undertaken to highlight tribal capacity for climate change adaptation. A basic mass-balance hydrologic model was developed for Pyramid Lake in order to create hypothetical projections of lake elevation under various climate change scenarios which may help to inform adaptive management planning for the Tribe. This research is funded by Department of Interior's Southwest Climate Science Center and USGS.