STAND: Understanding Stakeholder Values and Preferences for Future UK Treescapes. Thurs 4th July 11am.
National governments have set targets to increase tree cover to contribute to ‘apex’ targets such as net zero greenhouse gas emissions. To identify areas for treescape expansion and other land-use changes, there have been a number of mapping and scenario-building exercises at the UK scale. However, these ‘top-down’ approaches do not consider the values and preferences of stakeholders who live and work within local landscapes. Using a Participatory Scenario Planning (PSP) approach, we present 1) the values and land use preferences of local stakeholders in two upland landscapes: North Pennines (England) and the Elenydd (Wales), and 2) create stakeholder-led future land-use scenarios to predict the impacts of each scenario on greenhouse gas emissions, food & timber production, bird populations, recreation value and water run-off.
Speakers
Dr Melissa Minter (RSPB Centre for Conservation Science)
Melissa is a conservation scientist at the RSPB working on the scenario modelling component of the STAND project, creating both top-down (UK scale) and bottom-up (landscape scale) future land-use scenarios and understanding the predicted outcomes. She has a particular interest in the future of upland landscapes and species, and prior to RSPB completed a PhD at the University of York which focused on identifying genetic refuges of the Mountain Ringlet butterfly (Erebia epiphron), a montane species vulnerable to climate change, using species distribution modelling and genetic analyses.
Alix Zelly (RSPB Centre for Conservation Science)
Alix is a senior research assistant at the RSPB supporting the social science component of the STAND project, with an interest in understanding complex values surrounding future land use. She is also currently part of the Centre for Landscape Regeneration, supporting stakeholder-led land-use scenario creation in the Cairngorms. Alix has previously explored mechanisms for farmer-based collaboration for nature recovery and socio-political opportunities for transboundary collaboration.