GLOBAL OBSERVATION RESEARCH INITIATIVE IN ALPINE ENVIRONMENTS

The North American GLORIA Chapter

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The Consortium for Integrated Climate Research in Western Mountains (CIRMOUNT) is a collaborative, interdisciplinary consortium dedicated to understanding climates and ecosystems of western North American mountains.

CIRMOUNT's goal is to bring together researchers from diverse disciplines and institutions to measure and understand climate-driven changes in the unique landscapes that define western North American mountains, and to respond to the needs and challenges of western society for mountain resources imposed by climate change. CIRMOUNT is sponsored by a diverse group of agencies, universities, and institutions, and is endorsed as a pilot project of the International Mountain Research Initiative. The primary goal of the CIRMOUNT Work Group is to establish a North American GLORIA Chapter and:

1. Promote coordinated and integrated monitoring of alpine floral response to climate change in western North American mountains using the GLORIA multi-summit Target Region approach.

2. Promote research on other aspects of alpine ecology beyond those in the standard GLORIA approach, including additional floral diversity assessments, animal ecology, carbon issues, substrate relationships, etc.

With the completion of the first target regions in the United States (Glacier National Park, MT; Sierra Nevada, CA; and White Mountains, CA), CIRMOUNT proposes a North American GLORIA Chapter.

Contact Person:
Dr. Constance I. Millar (cmillar@fs.fed.us)
Dr. Daniel B. Fagre (dan_fagre@usgs.gov)
Dr. Ann Dennis (adennis@calflora.org)
Website: http://www.fs.fed.us/psw/cirmount/wkgrps/gloria/

Resurveyed

Rocky Mountains / Glacier National Park (Montana, USA)
White Inyo Mountains - siliceous (California, USA)

Active - Baseline data included

Sierra Nevada / Dunderberg (California, USA)
White Inyo Mountains - carbonatic (California, USA)
Vancouver Island (British Columbia, Canada)
Canadian Coast Range (S-British Columbia, Canada)
Rocky Mountains / San Juan Mountains (Colorado, USA)
Sierra Nevada / Carson Range/Tahoe Basin area (California, USA)
Rocky Mountains / Pioneer and Pintlar Range (Montana, USA)
Great Basin National Park (Nevada, USA)
Rocky Mountains / Rocky Mountain National Park - West of continental divide (Colorado, USA)

Active - Fieldwork finalised

Selawik Wilderness Refuge (Alaska, USA)
Rocky Mountains / Ruby Range (Colorado, USA)
Rocky Mountains / Great Sand Dunes National Park (Colorado, USA)

Active - In setup

Rocky Mountains / Niwot Ridge (Colorado, USA)

Planned

Rocky Mountains / Wind River Mountains (Wyoming, USA)
Rocky Mountains / Greater Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming, USA)
Selkirk Mountains / Mt. Revelstoke National Park (British Colombia, Canada)
Cariboo Mountains (British Colombia, Canada)

Interest expressed

North Cascades National Park (Washington, USA)
Rocky Mountains / N-Yukon (Yukon Territory, Canada)
South Cascades / Mount Shasta Region (California, USA)
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