INTRODUCTION

The Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts (WICCI) is a statewide collaboration of scientists and stakeholders formed in 2007 as a partnership to evaluate climate change impacts on Wisconsin. This report is the product of over 200 scientists, practitioners, and Wisconsin residents representing more than 50 national, state, and local agencies, non-profit organizations, and universities. It was peer reviewed by a Science Advisory Board. With this report, we present information on impacts from climate change specific to Wisconsin and science-based solutions and strategies to address these impacts.

What’s new since 2011

This report documents the issues and impacts of our warming climate on Wisconsin residents and describes the scientific progress made towards solutions since the 2011 Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts Assessment Report. Although it is evident that climate impacts are being felt in Wisconsin, this report contains vivid stories that help illustrate those impacts at a human scale.

Another new feature of this report is a start toward identifying and integrating environmental and climate justice (ECJ) into our assessment and solutions. The issues identified by WICCI Working Groups are part of a greater effort by the WICCI network to include ECJ issues in our strategic vision for the future. For the purposes of this report:

Environmental and climate justice is ensuring all people have fair access to environmental benefits, equitable protection from environmental and health hazards (including climate change), fair access to decision-making processes, and a healthy environment in which to live, learn, work, and recreate.

Future research

Climate change affects nearly all aspects of our society, and as a result this report cannot and does not cover the full range of important issues that Wisconsin will face. Among these issues are the economic impacts of climate change, the migration of human communities seeking to escape the impacts of climate change, and technological advances that will reshape our response to a changing climate. WICCI is an open and evolving network, and we welcome new insights and research that will advance our ability to identify future climate solutions.

Opportunities to learn more

This report is directed to policymakers, engineers, planners, infrastructure managers, nonprofits, and others working to address climate impacts in Wisconsin. It summarizes the key findings of the WICCI working groups and offers insight into the impacts at a human scale. On each of the WICCI Working Group webpages you will find interviews and more detailed content. While not all inclusive, this content offers a glimpse of how the changing climate is impacting Wisconsin. Deeper content is also available through other resources linked to this report.

Riverside Obidient. Photo credit: Kevin Sink

Solutions

Each chapter of this report contains a list of solutions to create a more climate resilient landscape in Wisconsin. In general, the solutions call for a change in the way we design, plan, and manage our built environment and landscape. We note that challenges and barriers to change are significant, but the ongoing impacts of climate change call for swift action. The working groups also identified solutions to slow climate change by limiting the buildup of heat-trapping greenhouse gases through innovations and nature-based solutions. Future research is needed to quantify some of these mitigation solutions as part of a comprehensive approach to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the state. You are invited to explore more about the listed solutions on the working group webpages.