For hundreds of small and medium-sized communities across the Great Lakes region, preparing for the water-related impacts of changing weather patterns can be challenging. The International Joint Commission’s (IJC) Great Lakes Water Quality Board has developed a new Great Lakes Climate Adaptation Resource Guide. The guide, available at ijc.org/en/wqb/gl-climate-adaption-guide, highlights tools and approaches to help communities integrate Great Lakes water topics into their climate adaptation and resilience strategies.
The board is hosting a one-hour public webinar to introduce the resource guide at noon on Tuesday, September 23. Experts from the board’s work group will share an overview of the guide and answer audience questions. Advanced registration is required and free: bit.ly/WQB-Great-Lakes-Adaptation-Guide-Webinar.
The guide will be presented by two members of the board’s work group: Liz Kirkwood, project co-chair, IJC Great Lakes Water Quality Board member, and Executive Director of Flow Water Advocates, and Jérôme Marty, IJC Great Lakes Science Advisory Board member, and Executive Director of the International Association for Great Lakes Research (IAGLR).
“All communities across the region need to plan for water-related impacts that are specific to the Great Lakes region, but some small and medium-sized communities may not have the same capacity and resources as larger cities,” said Liz Kirkwood. “The board created this guide so that communities can more easily develop strategies using Great Lakes-specific resources for climate adaptation and resilience.”
The guide offers a common framework for developing community climate adaptation strategies, and compiles tools, training resources and case studies from across the Great Lakes region.
“The Great Lakes form a unique eco-region—the lakes create their own weather,” said Jérôme Marty. “Yet most national, state, provincial and local climate adaptation strategies lack guidance tailored to the Great Lakes. This guide helps fill that gap by bringing together Great Lakes water-specific tools and resources from around the region in a single reference.”
The Great Lakes Water Quality Board is the principal advisor to the International Joint Commission under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. The board recommends strategies to resolve existing and prevent future challenges facing the lakes and provides advice on the role of relevant jurisdictions in implementing them.
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