Managing our biodiversity under climate change
Posted on 12 August, 2015 by Connecting Country
Climate change will affect all life forms, either directly or indirectly, and not just humans. How can local plants, animals and other species be helped to adapt to a changing climate? How do we decide what to prioritise?
Scientists, government agencies, community groups, landholders and others are grappling with these and other questions relating to the impact of climate change on biodiversity.
Connecting Country has been made aware of two upcoming events designed to help address some of these tough issues.
Symposium: ‘Managing Victoria’s Biodiversity under Climate Change’
This symposium to be held on the 8-9 October 2015 in Parkville is being organised by the Victorian National Parks Association, the Royal Society of Victoria and the University of Melbourne. Over these 2 days, a series of expert speakers will briefly outline likely impacts of climate change on Victoria’s ecosystems. Their presentations will address a likely scenario, or a series of scenarios, in the year 2050. Each talk will be followed by 20 minutes of discussion facilitated by a similarly qualified person.
For further details on the topics to be covered, and for registration details, see the attached link (click here).
Feedback on ‘North Central Region Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Plan’ (and ‘Regional Sustainable Agriculture Strategy’)
These two documents have been developed by the North Central CMA over many months, and are now available in draft form for public feedback. Five public forums are being held to discuss them, with one of these in the Mount Alexander Shire at the Campbells Creek Community Centre on the evening of Monday 31 August 2015. Guest presenter at this event will be Katie Finlay, an orchardist from Harcourt who was recently named as the 2015 Victorian Rural Woman of the Year. Katie will speak about her journey towards sustainability.
Copies of the press release (CLICK HERE) and the invitation flyer (CLICK HERE) from the CMA are available.
Feedback on these two documents is being accepted by the North Central CMA up until 14 September 2015. To view copies of the draft documents follow these links (HERE for climate plan [8MB] and HERE for the Sustainable Agriculture strategy summary [1MB]), or visit the North Central CMA website (here and here, respectively).
We’ve just been informed that Katie Finlay is unable to make it to the Castlemaine forum. Her husband Hugh will be providing the presentation about their farm and its journey towards sustainability instead.