The Institute for Ecological Management and Monitoring at San Diego State University partnered with the Climate Science Alliance and California Department of Fish and Wildlife to advance regional-scale climate-smart connectivity planning by applying cutting-edge approaches and best-practices in ecological science.

This methodological approach combines ensemble species distribution models with dynamic metapopulation models to advance connectivity modeling and planning approaches accounting for climate change, land-use shifts, and uncertainty. This novel complement of techniques has never been used before to develop a robust analysis of habitat-specific connectivity for multiple species. The project results support practical, proactive management of biodiversity under likely climate change scenarios by developing connectivity linkage maps for the South Coast Ecoregion.