Meet Me in Montana- Climate, Agriculture, and Adaptation

Driving into Montana is like driving into a movie scene. Wind whips through your hair, the roads are endless, rivers rush all around you, cows munch on their grass contently, and clouds dance around snowcapped mountains. In addition to the spectacular landscapes, the people here are genuinely friendly and are concerned about your well being. Bozeman, Montana is the epitome of the wonder and small town feel that the rural western United States is known for, and it will be my home for about two and a half months.

So what am I doing here? I am a fellow for the University of New Hampshire working on Climate, Water and Agriculture, and they have a partnership with One Montana, which is the organization that is hosting the work that I am doing. One Montana works on bridging the urban and rural divide in Montana. As a fellow I am doing a couple of tasks, which includes interviewing farmers and ranchers to identify what they are doing to adapt to climate change, and compiling a database of resources for farmers and ranchers to use in order to adapt to climate change if they are not doing that already. 

With climate change, Montana is expected to have less precipitation and snowpack, increased average temperatures, and increased susceptibility to extreme weather events. These changes will allow for opportunities to extend the growing season and plant crops that may not grow here otherwise, but it will also stress water resources, make communities susceptible to hazards like floods, put heat stress on livestock and crops, and expand the reach of certain crop pests and bark beetles. Although it will be challenging, there is an opportunity to adapt and prepare for these changes, and One Montana is working with ranchers, farmers, universities, extension agents, agencies, non-profits, and local governments to make sure that happens.

To start, I am developing a framework to think about everyday problems/opportunities/and issues that farmers/ranchers encounter, and then I will work to understand how farmer's/rancher's experiences will be impacted by climate change. Below are the current topics that are the base of the framework, but as I learn and read more this list will expand. Having this base will allow me to ask targeted questions that can help inform what will be needed for the database, and it will allow me to know what I need to ask about to see how farmers are currently adapting. 

In the next couple weeks I will begin to talk with a plethora of individuals around the state about agriculture and water/weather variability that comes with climate change. I am excited to see where this adventure takes me and to learn about an industry that I have only studied in books and classrooms.