Developing a framework and tools to help natural resource management groups reduce their risk and vulnerability to, and prepare for, climate change

气候变化对许多人类和自然系统来说是一个现存且日益严重的风险。了解潜在的变化和随后的脆弱性对于减少和准备应对这些风险，成为“气候智能”至关重要。许多自然资源管理组织明白，他们的保护区和运营存在潜在风险，但如何最好地处理数据量和不确定性如此之大，以至于他们无法直接将其纳入他们的管理和保护计划。这次实习的目的是与其中一个组织--诺福克野生动物信托基金合作，开发一个框架和一套工具，让它和类似的团体成为“气候智能”，并为气候变化的未来做好准备。诺福克野生动物信托基金是英国47个野生动物信托基金中成立时间最长的，2016年庆祝了它成立90周年。NWT负责管理50多个自然保护区和其他保护区，管理着诺福克约4500公顷的栖息地。在这31个地点中，26个是具有特殊科学价值的地点，9个是国家级自然保护区，11个是国际重要的拉姆萨尔湿地，12个是特别保护区(SPA)，16个是特别保护区(后两个分类是欧盟自然2000网络的一部分)。有效的保护必须超过单个地点，特别是在气候变化的情况下。因此，西北地区帮助发展了生物景观的概念-“……一种相对较新的思考我们如何管理土地的方式。这种方法得到了政府的认可，并由英国各地的野生动物信托基金提供，该方法寻求连接栖息地，而不仅仅是自然保护区，为物种和人类创造更强大和更大规模的景观。”(西北部)。这些活生生的景观旨在连接31个保护区、1300多个县野生动物遗址和周围地区，以帮助维持景观中各个地点之间的联系。一个实用的生命景观保护计划不仅需要西北地区，还需要包括环境公民社会、政府、行业和私人土地所有者在内的合作伙伴。这种实习使东英吉利大学的专业知识能够帮助西北地区确定该组织、其业务和保护区最容易受到气候变化影响的地方。目标是在这项工作的基础上开发一个框架、工具和培训材料，然后可以被英国和其他地方的其他组织使用。在确定了气候变化和变化对西北部地区的风险之后，实习生将帮助他们确定减少气候变化和变化风险的方法，为他们的自然保护区行动做好准备并变得更“气候智能”。开发这些信息的方式将使其他群体通过其自身的管理活动受益。这种伙伴关系被视为一种开发方法，帮助自然资源集团在不确定的未来保护其现有资产和未来发展。它还将着眼于潜在的未来研究需求，这些需求可以通过未来的NERC研究来解决，包括理学硕士和博士项目。这将加强和改善西北大学与东英吉利大学环境科学学院之间的长期联系。这项研究的一个潜在结果是确定了在地方、国家和欧盟层面上需要新的政策(例如，需要可能修改欧盟栖息地指令)。该项目将得到关系经理的进一步支持，以确保与实习生东道主的联系将嵌入大学内，以最大限度地发挥持续互动的潜力。研究和企业团队还将支持开发更多的翻译资金应用程序，以支持该项目，获得诺威治研究园区内的Impact资金流，以及国家计划，如知识转移伙伴关系和其他创新英国资金流。

Climate change is an existing and growing risk to many human and natural systems. Knowledge of the potential changes and subsequent vulnerability is vital in order to reduce and prepare for these risks, to become 'ClimateSmart'. Many natural resource management groups understand that there are potential risks to their reserves and operations, but how best to deal with the amount of data and uncertainties are so great that they have been unable to directly incorporate it into their management and conservation plans. The purpose of this internship is to work with one of these groups, Norfolk Wildlife Trust, to develop a framework, and set of tools, to allow it, and similar groups, to become 'ClimateSmart' and prepared for a climate changed future.Norfolk Wildlife Trust (NWT) is the oldest of the 47 Wildlife Trusts in the U.K., celebrating the 90th anniversary of its founding in 2016. NWT is responsible for more than 50 nature reserves and other protected sites, managing ~4500 ha of habitat in Norfolk. Of these 31 sites, 26 are Sites of Special Scientific Interest, 9 are National Nature Reserves, 11 are RAMSAR wetlands of international importance, 12 are Special Protection Areas (SPA) and 16 are Special Areas of Conservation (the latter two classifications part of the EU Natura 2000 network).Effective conservation must be more than individual sites, especially under a changing climate. Thus, NWT helped develop the Living Landscapes concept - "...a relatively new way of thinking about how we manage our land. Acknowledged by Government and delivered by Wildlife Trusts across the UK, the approach seeks to connect habitats, not just nature reserves, making a more robust and expanded scale landscape for species and people." (NWT). The Living Landscapes aim to connect the 31 reserves, more than 1300 County Wildlife Sites, and surrounding areas to help maintain links between sites within a landscape. A functional Living Landscape conservation plan requires not only NWT but also partners including environmental civil society, Governments, industry and private landowners.This internship allows the expertise of the University of East Anglia to assist the NWT to identify where the organization, its operations, and reserves are most vulnerable to climate change. The goal is develop a framework, tools and training materials, based on this work, which can then be used by other groups in the U.K. and elsewhere. Having identified the risks from climate variability and change to NWT, the intern will assist them in identifying ways to reduce this risk from climate variability and change, preparing for and becoming more 'Climate Smart' in their nature reserve operations. This information will be developed in a way that benefits other groups with their own management activities. This partnership is seen as a way of developing methods to help natural resource groups protect their existing assets and future developments in an uncertain future. It also will look at potential future research needs that could be addressed through future NERC research including MSc and PhD projects. This would strengthen and improve long-term ties between NWT and the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia. A potential outcome of this research is the identification of the need for new policies at the local, national and E.U. level (e.g., the need for a possible modification of the E.U. habitats directive).This project will be further supported by a Relationships Manager to ensure that the links with the intern host will be embedded within the University to maximise the potential of continuing interactions. The Research and Enterprise Team will also support the development of further translational funding applications to support the project, accessing impact funding streams from within the Norwich Research Park, as well as national programmes such as Knowledge Transfer Partnerships and other Innovate UK funding streams.