Products
We identify issues and uncertainties that pose obstacles to conservation and then—in collaboration with internal and external colleagues—develop science products that help overcome those obstacles.
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Marine | Science | Publications & Reports
Bridging the knowledge‐implementation gap between agency and academia: A case study of a graduate research experience
Aviv Karasov‐Olson, Alicia K. Bird, Amy C. Collins, Emily E. Graves, Julea A. Shaw, Eric F. Tymstra, T. Rodd Kelsey, Mark W. Schwartz
Conservation biology is particularly susceptible to the knowledge‐implementation gap where academic pursuits do not always meet the needs of practitioners. Providing future practitioners with…
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Technology | Science | Maps & Webmaps
Planting Stormwater Solutions
Brian Cohen, Kelsey Jessup, Sophie Parker, John Randall, Jill Sourial
Cities across Southern California are investing in new infrastructure to address the challenges of stormwater management. We promote the use of nature-based solutions to ensure projects both treat…
2020 | Freshwater | Science | Publications & Reports
Groundwater Thresholds for Ecosystems: A Guide for Practitioners
Melissa M. Rohde, Laurel Saito, Ryan Smith
In addition to benefiting humans, groundwater is a critical water supply to many ecosystems, providing a buffer during dry periods and critical habitat for rare and endemic species. Increasing…
2020 | Freshwater | Science | Publications & Reports
The ideal meander: Exploring freshwater scientist drawings of river restoration
Kristen N. Wilson, , Suzanne L. Baker, G. Mathias Kondolf
Many stream restoration projects are designed with the Natural Channel Design approach, which involves construction of single-thread meandering channels based on formulas for channel form. In some…
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Planning | Science | Publications & Reports
Shaping land use change and ecosystem restoration in a water-stressed agricultural landscape to achieve multiple benefits
Benjamin P. Bryant, T R. Kelsey, Adrian L. Vogl, Stacey A. Wolny, Duncan J. MacEwan, Paul C. Selmants, Tanushree Biswas, H S. Butterfield
Irrigated agriculture has grown rapidly over the last 50 years, helping food production keep pace with population growth, but also leading to significant habitat and biodiversity loss globally. Now,…
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Marine | Science | Publications & Reports
Improving scientific impact: How to practice science that influences environmental policy and management
Jonathan R. B. Fisher, Stephen A. Wood, Mark A. Bradford, Rodd Kelsey
2020 | Freshwater | Science | Publications & Reports
Evaluating and Protecting Environmental Water Assets: A Guide for Land Conservation Practitioners
Author: Chris Alford, Editors and Reviewers: Amy Campbell, Monty Schmitt, Sara Press, Wendy Eliot, Bob Neale
Evaluating and Protecting Environmental Water Assets: A Guide for Land Conservation Practitioners, a publication by TNC and the Sonoma Land Trust (SLT), provides provides easy to understand guidance,…
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Marine | Science | Science in Action
Research for Impact: How do we design scientific research to have impact in the world?
Jonathan R. B. Fisher, Stephen A. Wood, Mark A. Bradford, Thomas Rodd Kelsey
2020 | Freshwater | Science | Publications & Reports
Characterizing benthic macroinvertebrate and algal biological condition gradient models for California wadeable Streams, USA
Michael J. Paul, Ben Jessup, Larry R. Brown, James L. Carter, Marco Cantonatie, Donald F. Charles, Jeroen Gerritsena, David B. Herbst, Rosalina Stancheva, Jeanette Howard, Bill Isham, Rex Lowe, Raphael D. Mazor, Patina K. Mendez, Peter R. Ode, Alison O'Dowd, John Olson, Yangdong Pan, Andrew C. Rehn, Sarah Spaulding, Martha Sutula, Susanna Theroux
Water resource agencies assess stream water quality by determining the bugs and algae present to develop biotic indices. Yet translating these technical measures into meaningful language is difficult.…
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Technology | Science | Publications & Reports
Mojave Desert Springs: setting an ecological baseline
This article appears in the Desert Report, a news publication of the Sierra Club California/Nevada Desert Committee. The article introduces the Mojave Springs Research Project, led by The Nature…
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Marine | Planning | Technology | Science | Publications & Reports
Jack and Laura Dangermond Preserve Integrated Resources Management Plan
Butterfield, H.S., M. Reynolds , M.G. Gleason, M. Merrifield, B.S. Cohen, W.N. Heady, D. Cameron, T. Rick, E. Inlander, M. Katkowski, L. Riege, J. Knapp, S. Gennet, G. Gorga, K. Lin, K. Easterday, B. Leahy, M. Bell
This Plan frames the biological and cultural significance and provides the short- and long-term goals, objectives, and priority actions for the Jack and Laura Dangermond Preserve.
2020 | Freshwater | Marine | Science | Microsite
State of Salmon in California
Chinook, coho and steelhead were once tremendously abundant in most of California’s major rivers and streams. As recently as the 1960s, salmon and steelhead were so plentiful in streams that…
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Marine | Technology | Publications & Reports
Technology Catalyst Fund - 2019 Annual Report
Conservation needs to harness technology to meet the complex challenges of today’s world. The Technology Catalyst Fund provides early stage resources to investigate and prototype technologies…
2020 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Marine | Science | Publications & Reports
Conservation Science Catalyst Fund - 2019 Annual Report
The Nature Conservancy deploys science to help overcome major challenges facing people and nature. In today’s fast-paced world, turning threats to nature into opportunities for conservation…
2020 | Freshwater | Science | Publications & Reports
A functional flows approach to selecting ecologically relevant flow metrics for environmental flow applications
Sarah M. Yarnell, Eric D. Stein, J. Angus Webb, Theodore Grantham, Rob A. Lusardi, Julie Zimmerman, Ryan A. Peek, Belize A. Lane, Jeanette Howard, Samuel Sandoval-Solis
The authors of this paper are engaged in developing flow criteria for California Streams through California Environmental Flows Framework (CEFF) collaboration. The effort is funded by the State…
2019 | Freshwater | Planning | Science | Publications & Reports
Dynamic multibenefit solutions for global water challenges
In this article, the authors provide an example of how dynamic multi-benefit solutions used to provide “pop-up” wetland habitat for migratory birds also replenishing depleted aquifers to…
2019 | Freshwater | Science | Publications & Reports
Cannabis and residential groundwater pumping impacts on streamflow and ecosystems in Northern California
Samuel C. Zipper, Jennifer K. Carah, Christopher Dillis, Tom Gleeson, Ben Kerr, Melissa M. Rohde, Jeanette K. Howard, Julie K.H. Zimmerman
Using a newly developed tool for estimating streamflow depletion from groundwater pumping, this study examined the impacts of ongoing groundwater pumping on streamflow and aquatic ecosystems in the…
2019 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Science | Publications & Reports
Scenarios of climate adaptation potential on protected working lands from management of soils
Kristin B Byrd, Pelayo Alvarez, Benjamin Sleeter, Lorraine Flint, Alan Flint, Richard Cameron, Jeffrey Creque
Management of protected lands may enhance ecosystem services that conservation programs were designed to protect. Practices that build soil organic matter on agricultural lands also increase soil…
2019 | Freshwater | Science | Publications & Reports
A Transdisciplinary Approach to Characterize Hydrological Controls on Groundwater-Dependent Ecosystem Health
Melissa M. Rohde, Sara B. Sweet, Craig Ulrich, Jeanette Howard
Groundwater plays an essential role in supporting freshwater species, riparian habitats, and migratory birds. These ecological communities, commonly referred to as groundwater-dependent…
2019 | Freshwater | Terrestrial | Planning | Science | Publications & Reports
Evidence Synthesis as the Basis for Decision Analysis: A Method of Selecting the Best Agricultural Practices for Multiple Ecosystem Services
Gorm E. Shackelford, Rodd Kelsey, William J. Sutherland, Christina M. Kennedy, Stephen A. Wood, Sasha Gennet, Daniel S. Karp, Claire Kremen, Nathaniel E. Seavy, Julie A. Jedlicka, Kelly Gravuer, Sara M. Kross, Deborah A. Bossio, Andrés Muñoz-Sáez, Deirdre G. LaHue, Kelly Garbach, Lawrence D. Ford, Mark Felice, Mark D. Reynolds, Devii R. Rao, Kathleen Boomer, Gretchen LeBuhn, Lynn V. Dicks
Agricultural management practices impacts not only on crops and livestock, but also soil health, water quality, wildlife, and ecosystem services. There is abundant, but disconnected,…