1 Climate Adaptation: Getting “Buy-In” Northwest Tribal Water Rights Conference Anchorage, Alaska October 10, 2014 Climate Solutions University MODEL FOREST POLICY PROGRAM & CUMBERLAND RIVER COMPACT

2 Toby Thaler

3 I worked for Alaska Legal Services out of the Dillingham office in

4 Climate Adaption Planning Four Steps: Put together team Conduct resource and impact assessment (risks and opportunities) Prepare and adopt action plan Implement Fifth Step: Monitor results and revise plan as needed (Adaptive Management) Source: Snover, A.K., L. Whitely Binder, J. Lopez, E. Willmott, J. Kay, D. Howell, and J. Simmonds Preparing for Climate Change: A Guidebook for Local, Regional, and State Governments

5 Climate Solutions University “Buy-in” is most critical… Four Steps: Put together team Conduct resource and impact assessment (risks and opportunities) Prepare and adopt action plan Implement Fifth Step: Monitor results and revise plan as needed (Adaptive Management)

6 Aspects of “buy-in” criteria. Team = Engagement and Participation (including FTE) Adopt Action Plan = Policy Commitment (plus $ and FTE) Revise Plan = Policy Commitment (and more $ and FTE)

7 Context of “buy-in”. Organizational environment: Know who has authority to make policy decisions and commit resources ($ and FTE) Credibility: Do the plan leaders have the expertise to oversee preparation of a credible assessment Strength in numbers: The more interests you get on board (team), the more likely key decision makers will “buy in” Agendas exist: “What’s in it for me?” is always uppermost in policy decision makers mind

8 Relationships are Crucial. Planning by team is a collaborative process: relationships are key to success It takes time to build the necessary trust But: The policy decisions are usually made beyond the team; the team members must be committed to “sell” the plan to the decision makers in their own organizations

9 Example. Assessment results : Climate change will result in a critical need to leave water in stream to conserve fisheries (no consumptive withdrawals) Buy-in questions : Does the planning team include employees of the land owners/government entities with jurisdiction over water quantity? Did the team agree with the assessment’s conclusions AND commit to work for plan adoption AND implementation? (i.e., both $ and FTEs—a long term commitment)

10 Resources. A Community Based Approach to Improving Resilience of Forests and Water Resources: A Local and Regional Climate Adaptation Methodology, Thaler, Griffith, and Gilliam A Framework to Diagnose Barriers to Climate Change Adaptation, Moser and Ekstrom base/files/952/5241a63f0f66cpnas-2010-moser pdf

11 For more information on Climate Solutions University, please contact: Josh Dye