Plants and Natural Communities Working Group
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Provided by: Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts|Published on: September 5, 2023
Articles/WebsitesScientist Reviewed
9101112AP
Scientist Reviewed This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- This article reviews the impacts of climate change in Wisconsin on plant communities and details practices that can mitigate climate stressors while supporting adaptation.
- The article describes major threats to Wisconsin plant communities including extreme weather, drought, precipitation changes, and changes to the Great Lakes, and additional research reports related to extreme weather and habitat restoration are linked in the article.
Subjects: Biology, Earth and Space Sciences
Authors: Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts
Region: North America, USA - Midwest, United States, Wisconsin
Languages: English
Teaching Materials
Positives
- The article describes how environmental issues unrelated to climate change (like habitat loss and runoff) can compound with climate change to create major ecological challenges.
- The concept of a working group producing reports with science-backed solutions shows that communities can come together with hope to work towards resiliency.
- The working group highlights environmental justice concerns related to preserving hunting, fishing, farming opportunities and a healthy environment for Wisconsin residents.
Additional Prerequisites
- Students should be familiar with some of the ecosystem services of wetlands.
- Students should understand how extreme weather events can impact plant communities.
Differentiation
- Before reading the article, ask students how they think plants in their own communities have been affected by climate change.
- Consider having students dig deeper into the topic of invasive species and climate change by researching common invasive plants in Wisconsin and their tolerance to drought and flood conditions.
- As an extension activity, have students choose a wetland area near their schools and research whether there is documentation of climate change's effects on the ecosystem.
- Students are encouraged to read the linked Issue-Impact-Strategy Table report by the Plant and Natural Communities Working Group to learn about management practices such as cover cropping, wetland restoration, prescribed burning, drought-tolerant plantings, computer modeling, and tree planting. Have more advanced students do this and then write a summary of the report's findings.
This resource is the site for the Plants and Natural Communities Working Group for the Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts. The page describes what Wisconsin’s natural communities are and how they will be affected by climate change. The page also discusses potential solutions, links to related articles written by the group, and explains some climate justice issues. This webpage does not explain the science behind climate change and why the impacts mentioned are occurring, but it does link to other resources. The information presented is accurate and this resource is recommended for teaching.
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Resource Type and Format
Scientist Reviewed
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Our review process ensures that every resource in our library reflects the current state of climate science.
Learn about our review process →
