World Heritage USA Conference and Symposium 2024

21-22 November 2024 in Washington, DC

Climate Change Impacts and Mitigation at U.S. World Heritage Sites

Day One Schedule

Thursday, 21 November: World Heritage and Climate Change (9am-5pm)

Check in and Light Breakfast

Welcome: ICOMOS-USA President Dr. Doug Comer

Keynote: “Human-Caused Climate Change, World Heritage, and Solutions” by Dr. Patrick Gonzalez, University of California, Berkeley

Carbon pollution from cars, power plants, and deforestation has heated the Earth, altering global climate. Scientific research shows that this human-caused climate change is damaging the ecosystems and threatens the cultural resources of World Heritage Sites. Yet, recent progress on sustainable actions offers hope for the future.

Patrick Gonzalez, Ph.D., is a climate change scientist and forest ecologist at the University of California, Berkeley. He advances science-based action on human-caused climate change to protect nature and people, through research on climate change, ecosystems, and carbon solutions and assistance to local people and policymakers. Dr. Gonzalez has conducted field research in Africa, Latin America, and the U.S., published in Science, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and other journals, and assisted field managers and local people in 269 U.S. national parks and 26 countries. He has stood publicly for scientific integrity and broadened public understanding of climate change in the New York Times and other media. He served as Principal Climate Change Scientist of the U.S. National Park Service and Assistant Director for Climate and Biodiversity of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Dr. Gonzalez has served as a lead author for four reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the science panel awarded a share of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.

Setting the Stage: “Visualizing Climate Change at Everglades and Mesa Verde” by Dr. Lee Lines

Panel 1: Climate Change Impacts and Risks – as seen in U.S. World Heritage Sites 10-11am

Moderator: Dr. Amber N. Wiley
Panelists: Allison Young, Dr. Joseph Kellndorfer
National Park Service managers discuss observed historical changes and future risks to natural and cultural resources in US World Heritage Sites.

Panel 2: Climate Change Resilience and Adaptation – as seen in U.S. World Heritage Sites 11-12pm

Moderator: Kate Montague Perry, JD
Panelists: Dr. Victoria Herrmann, Jennifer Posner, Jennifer Browning
Managers are developing resilience measures to conserve natural and cultural resources under future climate change.

Lunch break: 12-1pm. A Box Lunch will be provided.

Panel 3: Carbon Solutions and Sustainability – Reducing the Cause of Climate Change 1-2pm

Moderator: Dr. Arleen Pabon
Panelists: Felix Lopez, Megan Brown
Protected areas and their visitors can reduce the carbon pollution that causes climate change through energy efficiency, renewable energy, and reducing waste.

Panel 4: Climate Change – The Role of World Heritage Sites in Communication and Education 2-3pm

Moderator: Monica Rhodes
Panelists: Julia Washburn, Dr. Lee Lines, Donna Graves
World Heritage sites bear witness to climate change and offer a platform to communicate impacts and solutions.

Panel 5: Climate Change – National Policy and World Heritage Site Action 3-4pm

Moderator: Tom Cassidy
Panelists: Kristen Brengel, Jenny Parker, Amy Gilbert
Advocacy for new national policies and site-level actions can help protect World Heritage for future generations.