2018 Great Lakes Adaptation Forum

Abstract

At the start of a climate change adaptation workshop, there is often a "quiet" that settles in due to apprehension and wildly different levels of knowledge about the science, the setting, or the cultural nuances for the area being assessed. My experience leading workshops during the development of the Indiana Dunes Climate Change Adaptation Plan will start the workshop, followed by activities where participants share stories, learn from mistakes, and test a few innovative approaches.

Description

To develop comprehensive climate change adaptation plans, we generally begin with a lot of scientific literature searches, expert interviews, current land management inquiries, and connections made with many stakeholders and community groups. All of this planning is punctuated with a workshop – or even a series of workshops – that brings representatives from these stakeholder groups together in one place, with one goal. At the start of a new workshop, there is often a “quiet” that settles in due to lack of familiarity or apprehension. To add to this loss of inertia, there may be wildly different levels of knowledge about the science, the setting, or the cultural nuances for the area being assessed. There are many innovative and creative techniques that workshop leaders employ to break the ice, overcome this quiet phase, and bring on a storm of feedback and collaboration. My own experience leading workshops during the development of Indiana Dunes Climate Change Adaptation Plan will be augmented with other stories and contributions from colleagues at the Field Museum who conduct conservation workshops in South America. A workshop setting at the conference would allow the participants to share their stories, exchange tips, and learn from others mistakes. Time would be allotted to testing one innovative activity for getting people talking.