About the Fisheries Adaptation Project
Climate planning for Gulf of Alaska fishing communities. What Is Adaptation Planning?Background:
The Gulf of Alaska is a vital marine ecosystem that supports $2 billion in annual commercial fisheries and sustains isolated, fishing-dependent communities, including Alaska Native peoples with deep cultural ties to the region. However, climate change is causing significant disruptions, including marine heatwaves, shifts in species distribution, ecosystem declines, and fisheries instability. Many communities lack formal climate adaptation plans.
This project helps to empower locally lead planning by working with communities in the GOA to help develop adaptation plans that ensure long-term resilience in the face of ongoing environmental challenges. Cordova, Sitka, and Kodiak are key cultural and economic hubs. Rooted in participatory research, this project will engage diverse local stakeholders to strengthen their capacity for climate adaptation and enhance their ability to respond to climate impacts on fisheries, directly supporting long-term sustainability and resilience goals.
Project Objectives:
Create locally-determined fisheries adaptation plans in Gulf of Alaska communities that foster community resilience through collaborative adaptation.
Develop adaptation planning templates and resources to guide other fishing communities nationwide in creating fisheries adaptation plans.
Build a body of knowledge on best practices for localized fisheries adaptation to advance scientific and public understanding of fishing community resilience.
Share project outcomes and lessons learned through mixed-media communication, including a webpage, research briefs, news pieces, and presentations at relevant events.
Our Goal:
Our goal is to lay the groundwork for community and education investments to build local capacity and overall resilience while protecting ecosystem health and promoting energy independence. Community development guided by these shared values has the ability to enhance economic diversification while maintaining a thriving blue economy. Through cohesive local and regional planning, we aim to bridge today’s vulnerabilities by creating a roadmap toward a sustainable and thriving future.
Our Vision Statement
The Gulf of Alaska is a rich marine ecosystem that Alaska Native people have stewarded for thousands of years. Today, over 150 communities rely on this ecosystem for food, livelihoods, and cultural identity. While climate change poses significant threats, it also presents opportunities for resilience and transformative change. Our adaptation planning project aims to shape the future of the region by addressing systemic issues, drawing on local and traditional knowledge, and centering shared values and assets.
Strong human, social, physical, and natural assets enrich Gulf of Alaska communities. Core values include environmental stewardship, respect for local and traditional knowledge, social ties, education, and place-based identities. Subsistence and commercial fishing connect generations, fostering adaptation, innovation, and local scientific capacity.
The Gulf of Alaska faces profound ecological changes, including warming temperatures, shifting fish populations, and increasingly extreme weather events. Our shared future will depend on today’s choices. We envision a future that values local and traditional knowledge, focuses on environmental stewardship, and promotes equity in resource access.
Our goal is to lay the groundwork for community and education investments to build local capacity and overall resilience while protecting ecosystem health and promoting energy independence. Community development guided by these shared values has the ability to enhance economic diversification while maintaining a thriving blue economy. Through cohesive local and regional planning, we aim to bridge today’s vulnerabilities by creating a roadmap toward a sustainable and thriving future.
Timeline & Goals:
Project milestones from kickoff in 2023 through 2026, highlighting upcoming events and workshops.
