Nick Pyatt, Director at Trioss, will address the Institute’s National Conference: Innovation for Change in May on: Adaptation Pathways – Adapting in an uncertain climate changing world. Trioss has a track record in tackling organisational resilience to a changing and uncertain future climate.
Nick’s background:
Nick gained a Forestry Diploma from the Scottish School of Forestry Inverness College, UHI, and a BSc in Agroforestry from the University College of North Wales (now Bangor University). Before studying at Inverness, he was a forest worker with the Forestry Commission at Delamere Forest, in Cheshire. Armed with his Diploma, Nick joined Fountain Forestry in Caithness before embarking on a 20 year career in forestry overseas; spending much of it running the international forestry consultancy FRR.
Since 2006, Nick’s work has broadened to address social and environmental sustainability challenges to the success of businesses including, though not exclusively, forestry. During the last five years this has increasingly focused on climate change impacts. His current assignments include work in UK, Australia, Kyrgyzstan and Zimbabwe, much of it including the adaptation pathways approach he will discuss in his presentation; Adaptation Pathways – Adapting in an Uncertain Climate Changing World.
Nick gives the Institute a teaser for what’s to come in his presentation:
The global climate is changing in ways that will change forest management decisions at some point; changing wind, rain and temperature. Forestry is a classic climate vulnerable sector; making long term, climate vulnerable. At the current rate of change, the climate today will be different from the climate at the end of a rotation. Whilst the climate is changing, it is not possible to know precisely when different management decisions might be needed. It is possible to work out under what climate conditions current decisions would no longer be good enough within a range of climate outcomes that are possible in the UK. Knowing that, response pathways can be considered and the most helpful options identified.
The infrastructure sector in particular is taking on this conundrum and is having success with an approach called ‘Adaptation Pathways’. Infrastructure planners also make long term climate vulnerable decisions. The approach was pioneered in planning London’s flood protection. It is now being adopted world-wide.
London’s current flood protection is expected to become inefficient in around 2070. They know the most efficient and effective actions to take and who needs to take them. Climate change may progress more quickly or slowly, so triggers for action are based on actual changes in water levels and flows etc., which will be more accurate indicators than long term climate projections. What is more they know under what conditions the next actions will fail and how to respond.
Under what conditions will the current Wind Throw Hazard Class calculation no longer be a good guide for forestry planning? What will be the most effective response for different decision makers? How will we know when to act? How do we ensure those actions happen? What are the answers for other key forest management decisions?
The presentation ‘Adaptation Pathways – Adapting in an Uncertain Climate Changing World’ will introduce the approach and consider its value for the UK forest sector.
Thank you Nick, looking forward to hearing you speak at the conference.
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