Scott Hoffman Black, Ph.D.
Xerces Society
Dr. Black has extensive experience as a researcher, conservationist, and teacher in endangered species conservation, pollinator conservation, macroinvertebrate monitoring, and forest and range management issues.
Jessica directs our Spatial Analysis Program, with an emphasis on preparing local climate change projections for communities and agencies planning for climate change. She has developed custom python scripts to facilitate the conversion of raw climate data into aesthetically pleasing and educational projection maps. She has a wide range of GIS and cartographic experience at the municipal, planning, and scientific levels. Jessica also assists with the mapping needs of the rest of the programs at the Geos Institute, such as integrating spatial datasets to map forests with high carbon stores, mapping fish habitat and passage impediments to aid aquatic biologists and land managers with restoration efforts, assessing land owners and pollutants within drinking water surface water source areas, and various other program needs as they arise.
She is a Certified GIS Professional (GISP) from the GIS Certification Institute (GISCI), holds a B.A. in Geography from Augustana College in Illinois and a Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Systems from Portland State University.
Marni brings communities the science they need to make informed decisions and walks them through a process that results in climate change strategies that are integrated across both natural and human communities. Marni has also worked on developing climate-informed conservation blueprints for the Klamath-Siskiyou ecoregion and the Colorado Plateau. Marni joined the ClimateWise team after completing postdoctoral research with the Forest Service’s Rocky Mountain Research Station. That research investigated the effects of climate change on wildlife and wildlife habitat by working with a team to model climate stress and assess the level of state planning for climate change in the State Wildlife Action Plans. Marni has expertise in climate change effects on wildlife, ornithology, metapopulation ecology, conservation genetics, and invasive species.
Marni holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from the University of California at Santa Barbara, a M.S. in Wildland Resource Science from the University of California at Berkeley, and a Ph.D. in Ecology from the University of Wyoming.
Tonya is the Executive Director of the Geos Institute and the Director of its ClimateWise Initiative, serving as the lead for ClimateWise projects. She has taken a lead role in developing the concept of Whole Community Resilience, which takes a holistic approach to addressing climate change impacts and develops solutions that are both ecologically sound and socially equitable. She and her ClimateWise team help community leaders understand likely future conditions, determine vulnerabilities, and develop strategies to address them that care for both people and nature.
In 2019, she and her ClimateWise team launched Climate Ready Communities, an “assisted do-it-yourself” climate resilience planning program that provides affordable assistance to small, mid-sized, and/or under-resourced communities nationwide. She is a co-author of A Practical Guide to Building Climate Resilience, a free, step-by-step planning guide which serves as the foundation for the Climate Ready Communities program.
As a member of the ClimateWise team, Tonya has helped communities adapt to changing climate conditions in Oregon, California, Montana, Alaska, Texas, Kentucky, Colorado, and Ontario, Canada. In 2012 she co-organized with the Kresge Foundation the first national gathering of adaptation practitioners: The Practitioners Workshop on Climate Change Adaptation: Integrated Strategies for Human and Natural Communities. She has developed climate adaptation curricula for the Association of Climate Change Officers.
Tonya served on the Project Advisory Committee for Community-Based Adaptation in the United States: Understanding How and Why Communities are Taking Action. She is a member of the American Society of Adaptation Professionals where she has led working groups to develop climate adaptation program guidance for Congress and incoming administrations. She formerly served as the Treasurer for the Nonprofit Association of Oregon. Tonya holds a B.S. in Biophysical Environmental Studies from Northland College and a M.A. in Community Development from Goddard College.
Here at the Geos Institute we use science to help people predict, reduce, and prepare for climate change.
Climate change poses an imminent threat to our families, friends, and the larger human and wildlife communities of the world. Unprecedented storms, floods, droughts, and sea level rise are already presenting serious problems in many parts of our nation. We know from climate scientists around the world that it is only going to get worse. The time to act is now.
The science is clear. The climate is changing, and human activity is the primary cause. At the Geos Institute, we see three options:
We choose to get to work, and we hope you will join us. We come to this work from a variety of scientific disciplines, personal experiences, and faiths, but what binds us together is that we all care deeply about the people and wildlife who share this world.
We believe that while there may not always be a clear solution to a problem, there is always an optimal response that addresses as many needs as possible and moves us toward the larger goals of reducing the overall magnitude of climate change and adapting well to the changes that can no longer be avoided.
Our three initiatives focus on the places where we believe our collective response will have the greatest impact, either positive or negative, on our communities and the natural world. Specifically, our initiatives work to enhance community resilience, freshwater river systems, and intact forests.
In each initiative (below), we prefer the long view to the short term, partnerships over individual action, and solutions that address a variety of issues for people and nature. We have a fundamental belief that we are capable of successfully addressing the multitude of problems associated with climate change if we work together, leave our egos at the door, and keep our eye on the long-term goal of leaving our children a planet worth inhabiting.
We provide the services and support to local leaders necessary to catalyze ecologically responsible actions to address the climate change crisis and build community resiliency.
We assemble the information and support necessary to shift the water management sector from a primary focus on built (grey) solutions to (green) solutions that enhance the natural capacity of fresh water ecosystems.
We promote transformative policies that protect carbon-dense, biodiverse ecosystems essential to climate adaptation and mitigation on both public and private forest lands.
Our Staff, Board of Directors, and National Science Advisory Board work together to help ensure that individual citizens and government officials have access to the credible science they need to make informed, responsible decisions and meet the challenges of a changing climate.
5 video cartoons explaining how carbon atoms form bonds, break apart, and create conditions that can lead to global warming. By a science correspondent known for his ability to explain complex technical news in a clear, entertaining style (5 min each).
A thoroughly explained video on the impacts of climate change and how it works. Fascinating narrative about watching changes first hand (10 min).
Description: What is a carbon footprint? What is the carbon footprint of a North Carolina family living in the United States vs. a Chinese family living in China?
Description: Scientists sacrifice small sections of the Amazon by setting small fires in the forest, to better understand global warming.