Master's Theses 2020-06-05T13:48:39Z Tribal Strategic and Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation: A Case Study of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Tribal Strategic and Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation: A Case Study of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Rae, Lynn Native nations are at the forefront of the climate change crisis and one of the most vulnerable populations to the impacts, but they also possess the most knowledge and experience with adaptation. A growing number of Native nations and tribal institutions are preparing for climate change and developing strategies, formal plans, and initiatives to increase the resiliency of their communities. Moreover, many American Indian tribes are considered models for climate change adaptation because they are tackling complex climate change problems across multiple scales with fewer resources to increase the resiliency of their communities. Previously published research shows that Native nations that exercise sovereignty and self-governance while maintaining cultural continuity are having greater success at managing their land and natural resources (Jorgenson 2007). There is, however, limited understanding of tribal climate change adaptation and additional information is needed to understand how tribes are exercising self-governance and approaching climate change issues to advance adaptation planning and implementation. The purpose of this research is to identify and consider some of the challenges of tribal climate change adaptation and the strategic approaches that tribes are using to manage and protect their land, natural resources and communities. This research involves a limited review of the tribal natural resource planning and climate change adaptation literature, and a case study with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) of the Flathead Reservation to assess the strategies and resources utilized by their communities to support adaptation planning. A total of 11 semi-structured interviews were conducted with CSKT leaders and department representatives to consider tribal perspectives and experiences in the adaptation planning and implementation process. Additionally, a small group discussion was conducted with CSKT Elders to understand how climate change is affecting the Tribes’ communities and cultures. This research and the case study findings demonstrate the transformative potential for tribal community development and climate change adaptation when aspects of tribal sovereignty, self-governance, and strategic and sustainable natural resource management are embedded into tribal planning and decision-making processes. While there are varying challenges and complexities associated with tribal climate change adaptation that must be considered, the findings offer examples and insights that may help other tribes further develop existing strengths, protect cultural and spiritual values, and increase community resilience. This research also considers future research needs and next steps to support tribal climate change adaptation. 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z The Enigmatic Northwestern North American Climate Response to the 1783 Laki Eruption The Enigmatic Northwestern North American Climate Response to the 1783 Laki Eruption Edwards, Julie The 1783 Laki eruption in Iceland was among the largest high-latitude eruptions of the last millennium, but the seasonal and regional climate response was heterogeneous in space and time. In North America, tree-ring maximum latewood density (MXD) chronologies from Alaska suggest that the summer of 1783 was extraordinarily cold, even though the eruption did not begin until early June. In order to resolve the spatial extent and seasonal timing of the climate ffects of the Laki eruption, we use a combination of high-resolution quantitative wood anatomy analyses, climate model simulations, and proxy systems modeling to examine the temperature response over northwestern North America. We measured wood anatomical characteristics of white spruce (Picea glauca) trees from two locations in northern Alaska. Cell characteristics in the earlywood of the 1783 ring are normal while latewood cell wall thickness is significantly and anomalously reduced compared to non-eruption years. Applying complementary evidence from climate model experiments and proxy systems modeling, we interpret these features as indicating an abrupt and premature cessation of cell wall thickening due to an rapid decrease in temperature toward the end of the growing season linked to both forced and internal climate variability. Reconstructions using conventional annual resolution maximum latewood density likely over-estimate total growing season cooling in this year, while ring width data fail to capture this abrupt late summer volcanic signal. Our study has implications not only for the interpretation of the climatic impacts of the Laki eruption in North America, but more broadly demonstrates the importance of considering timing and internal variability when comparing proxy temperature reconstructions and climate model simulations, and demonstrates the value of developing cellular-scale tree-ring proxy measurements for paleoclimatology. 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z Spatiotemporal Peatland Productivity and Climate Relationships Across the Western South American Altiplano Spatiotemporal Peatland Productivity and Climate Relationships Across the Western South American Altiplano Anderson, Talia The South American Altiplano is one of the largest, semiarid, high-altitude plateaus in the world. Within the Altiplano, peatlands locally known as ‘bofedales’ provide key water resources and ecosystem services to Andean communities and are important components of regional hydrology. Since bofedales are found near the upper-elevational limits for vegetation growth, they are highly sensitive to climate variability and change. Recent warming trends, changes in snow cover, and shifting atmospheric circulation patterns are among the differences that will likely affect peatland dynamics and regional hydrology. It is therefore urgent to better understand the relationships between climate variability and the spatiotemporal variations in peatland productivity across the Altiplano. Here, we use a recently developed inventory of bofedales, based on 31 years of Landsat data, to explore regional productivity patterns and climate influences on the dynamics of peatland vegetation. We focus specifically on the bofedal network in the Chilean Altiplano, the driest sector of the plateau, and use the satellite-derived NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) as an indicator of vegetation activity. We develop temporally continuous NDVI products at the bofedal unit, 1 km2, and 5 km2 scales in order to evaluate relationships with climate variables over the past three decades. We conclude that cumulative precipitation from the current year to two years prior and snow persistence from two years prior are strongly associated growing season productivity, demonstrating the complex lagged relationships between climate and peatland productivity in the Chilean Altiplano. We also show that the recent jump in peatland productivity between 2013–2015 drives the increasing trend in NDVI and is likely a response to consecutive years of anomalously high snow accumulation and rainfall. A significant relationship between productivity and temperature does not emerge at the large-scale. Understanding the large-scale productivity dynamics and characterizing the response of bofedales to climate variability over the last three decades provides a baseline to more effectively monitor the responses of Andean peatlands to climate change. 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z Differences in Propagation and Isolation of Wild Type Iowa Strain and Luciferase Iowa Strain Cryptosporidium Parvum Differences in Propagation and Isolation of Wild Type Iowa Strain and Luciferase Iowa Strain Cryptosporidium Parvum Pottorff, Karissa Cryptosporidium parvum, a coccidian parasite in the phylum Apicomplexa, is the second leading infectious agent responsible for causing diarrhea in children younger than five years old in resource-limited countries. It also causes disease in calves and other mammals and is a major cause of economic loss in agriculturally important livestock species. There are currently no consistently effective parasite-specific pharmaceuticals available for treating or preventing the infection besides a P23 vaccine. Therefore, Cryptosporidium parvum was genetically modified by others to express the Luciferase gene to help researchers rapidly and efficiently test multiple potential anti-cryptosporidial drugs and therapies. These genetically modified organisms are also aiding in the study of gene expression, with the ability to identify the slightest changes in transcription, and the role(s) of genes thought to be involved in pathogenesis. In the present study the Luciferase Cryptosporidium parvum (Nluc-Cp) or Wild type Iowa strain Cryptosporidium parvum (WT- Cp) were used to infect Holstein bull calves to determine the level of propagation and recoverability of each after isolation procedures. It was hypothesized that the propagation and isolation of Nluc-Cp versus WT-Cp in neonatal calves would be the same. It was found that the Nluc-Cp calves were healthier and propagated fewer oocysts than WT-Cp. Further, Nluc-Cp proved difficult to isolate based on the self-adherent nature of the oocysts which resulted in clumping and reduced recovery. 2019-01-01T00:00:00Z