| Climate change is having profound effects on California’s environment and these effects are projected to increase considerably over time. Climate-induced effects on wildlife, in combination with other factors, have the potential to greatly diminish vulnerable wildlife populations and habitats. In this presentation, we will discuss numerous opportunities to consider climate change when making natural resource management decisions at the local, regional, and state levels. We will focus particularly on ways that climate vulnerability assessments and adaptation planning can influence management of lands, water, fish, and wildlife, using the existing legal and policy framework and through new tools and policy mechanisms. Several examples of how the practices of climate vulnerability assessment, adaptation strategies, and climate action plans are influencing natural resource management will be described. |