Virginia’s rural residents and economy are particularly vulnerable to a changing climate with different weather patterns, degrading natural resources, and biodiversity loss. With over 90% of the state comprising agricultural (~30%) and forested (~60%) lands, Virginia's communities and ecosystems are experiencing changing precipitation patterns, increased storm intensity, and shifting growing seasons. A particular and unique challenge in Virginia is the fragmented nature of land ownership: the average farm size is 187 acres (half that of a state like Iowa), over 85% of farms are family-owned, and 75% of private forest lands exist in small, family-owned parcels. Thus, while climate is intensifying globally, adaptation in Virginia must occur at small scales and in coordination with thousands of individual actors with different constraints and resources.
This project aims to leverage an unparalleled opportunity at a mixed agricultural site to identify potential “win-win” scenarios, where diverse needs can be met through innovative land management. With practitioner partners, it will co-create local-scale, data-backed, and implementable solutions that can help Virginia landowners maintain their livelihoods into an uncertain climate future. The researchers will experiment with land use changes (e.g. regenerative agriculture, burning, riparian restoration) and measure how these changes enhance or degrade ecosystem services (e.g. clean water, biodiversity, etc.).
