Alaskan stakeholder-defined research needs in the context of climate change

Alaska residents are already feeling the tangible impacts of climate change and are concerned about future impacts. In response, they have generated a large quantity of documents that describe their climate change-related research needs. This paper reviews and codes 63 stakeholder-generated document...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polar geography (1995) 2015-01, Vol.38 (1), p.42-69
Main Authors: Knapp, Corrine Noel, Trainor, Sarah F.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Climate change
Stakeholders
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Summary:Alaska residents are already feeling the tangible impacts of climate change and are concerned about future impacts. In response, they have generated a large quantity of documents that describe their climate change-related research needs. This paper reviews and codes 63 stakeholder-generated documents that address climate change research needs in Alaska in order to synthesize common research needs and assess gaps in needs assessment. We find that research needs related to infrastructure, economics, hazards and safety, and terrestrial ecosystem impacts are most frequently mentioned. The review identifies a current focus on broad-scale expert assessments, and a gap in local-scale and participatory approaches. The majority of identified information needs cross traditional disciplines and require interdisciplinary approaches. Finally, this research suggests that scientists, stakeholders, and information translators in Alaska engage in iterative dialog in order to better link scientific inquiry to practice.
ISSN:1088-937X
1939-0513
DOI:10.1080/1088937X.2014.999844