Projects

NatureServe worked closely with Save the Redwoods League (SRL) on development of a decision support toolkit (DST) focused on NatureServe Vista to assess current and future forest threats and prioritize areas for conservation and restoration. NatureServe used Vista to compile forest types and species, expert knowledge on their viability requirements and responses to stressors and conservation practices, delineate a current and future scenario of stressors and conservation, and evaluate how forests and species are doing now and might be doing in the future. We then generated several prioritizations using Marxan software (through the Vista interoperability wizard) to tease out good opportunities for conserving already intact but unprotected areas and those forest stands that could benefit from restoration, regardless of protection status. NatureServe transferred the DST to SRL in late 2016 and provided training and support so they could apply the toolkit to a variety of routine decisions and development of long range plans and strategies.