Collaborative Research: Ecosystem Response to a Warming Arctic: Deciphering the Past to Inform The Future.

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The Arctic is currently warming twice as fast as the global average and this is expected to result in a northward shift in plant ranges. An increase in woody vegetation would reduce surface reflection of light and heat (albedo), and increase atmospheric water vapor, a positive feedback that is currently poorly included in climate models. In the Eastern Canadian Arctic (ECA) stratified sediment in lakes spanning the current interglacial and the warmer previous interglacial, preserve sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) and organic molecules that can be used for reconstruction of past ecosystems and their dependence on temperature and hydroclimate. By combining data from these sediments with modern vegetation studies and climate monitoring, an empirically based ecosystem-climate model will be developed to predict the likely evolution of Arctic ecosystems by 2100 under a range of climate trajectory scenarios. This will be the first integration of sedaDNA-based vegetation records with biomarker-based climate records in lake sediment containing records of a much warmer Arctic. There are few ecosystem studies for the thin soils on crystalline terrain of the ECA. Floristic studies and vegetation-environment analyses around targeted lakes across a strong climate gradient establish the current relation between plant assemblages and summer temperature and define the relation between sedaDNA and nearby plant communities. Temperature loggers in soils, air, and lake- water, and analyzes of DNA and biomarkers in modern soils and lake surface sediment will enhance understanding of promising new molecular proxies and facilitate the development of regional training sets. The project brings together experts and state-of- the-art facilities in Arctic plant ecology, Paleoclimate, sedaDNA, and Organic Geochemistry to derive transformative new insight into the complex interplay between climate and biogeography at high latitudes, and will lead to a robust perspective on the potential response of ecosystems to anticipated future warming across the ECA. The project team is committed to sharing research results with the broader public through outreach among local communities in the Canadian Arctic as well as at home. The team will work closely with Inuit guides and assistants during fieldwork, much of which is near traditional hunting and fishing lands, and will share results with nearby Inuit communities through displays at Parks Canada offices. A strong partnership with Nunavut Research Institute and its affiliated Arctic College has been developed over several decades, and this partnership will be expanded by establishing an interactive lake-monitoring program in collaboration with the Environment Technology Program students and staff of Arctic College. In Boulder, Colorado, a scholarship-supported summer field and lab course for underrepresented high school students will be developed based on paleoecological and paleoclimatic perspectives on climate change. This project will help launch two early-career scientists, one female and one Latino, as well as a career scientist and two postdocs, two of whom are female, and two new graduate students. The laboratory component will support several graduate and undergraduate assistants, who will gain valuable research experience and have the opportunity to complete theses based on their research activities.