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Sept. 12, 2023 |  By: Deborah Van Fleet - Public News Service

Study Hopes to Strengthen Climate Resilience in Nebraska Rural Communities

drought

By Deborah Van Fleet - Public News Service

Although drought conditions in Nebraska have improved since earlier this year, half of the state is still experiencing moderate to extreme drought, with a portion in exceptional drought. The impact of extreme weather events on rural, agriculturally based communities is hard to overstate. A new four-year study, Rural Confluence, involving the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Oklahoma State University and Louisiana State University, aims to help rural communities increase their resilience against climate impacts.

Mary Emery, director of UNL's Rural Prosperity Nebraska, said they are taking a bit of a different approach by seeking input from community members first.

"There's a lot of resistance sometimes when people from outside say, 'Oh, we did all this research, and this is what you should do,' Emery said. "And people are saying, 'Well, but you don't know our community, you don't really know if that'll work or not work.' "

Funded by the National Science Foundation, a major focus of the study will be water. Emery added scientists, geographers and computer modelers will consider the communities' concerns and perceived needs as they develop models of how they may be impacted by climate change. She said when communities have a sense of what challenges they might face, they can be better prepared to deal with them. Each university will choose two communities in their state with different profiles, such as one that relies on agriculture and another that relies on tourism.

She points to the example of communities that have had taken steps to increase their resilience against forest fires.

"Where communities have worked hard to prepare their community to be resistant to forest fires, the damage to the community is significantly less," she explained.

Emery said the next phase will involve sharing what the modeling shows with the community. For example, it could indicate whether they might be facing a flash drought versus a long-term drought.

"We'll work with the community on, 'Here's what the model is telling us." she said. "How can you use this information to make changes in your community?' So, the communities are helping us think about how you implement strategies that come out of the science."

So far, preliminary discussions have been held with a few potential communities. The NSF funding includes a stipend for the communities that participate.