Quantifying Socioecological Consequences of Changing Snow and Icescapes: A Data-model Fusion Approach

DESCRIPTION: Snow and ice are key features of Arctic and boreal regions (ABRs) for approximately nine months each year, and thus play a central role in governing its social-ecological systems in myriad ways. In recent decades, ABR warming has caused changes in the spatial extent and distribution, seasonal timing and duration, and physical characteristics and properties, of snow and ice covers. These multi-dimensional changes in snow- and ice-scapes are occurring concurrently and with a high degree of spatial heterogeneity, creating a complex mosaic of conditions over which people, and the big game species and transportation networks on which they rely, traverse. Furthermore, snow- and ice-scape conditions have a complex and comprehensive influence on biological processes in ABRs, with significant ramifications for carbon cycling that feedback and regulate climate. This project’s overarching science goal is to: Quantify the socio-ecological consequences of changing snow- and ice-scapes across the ABoVE study domain.