Affiliated Faculty & Partners


Alisa Wade

Research Coordinator

Department: North Central Climate Adaptation Science Center

University System: USGS - Missoula

Website(s): https://www.usgs.gov/staff-profiles/alisa-wade?qt-staff_profile_science_products=3#qt-staff_profile_science_products

Professional Summary:

Alisa Wade is the research coordinator for the USGS North Central Climate Adaptation Science Center. She is a conservation scientist, trained at the intersection of physical, ecological, and social science, with a particular interest in bridging the gap between science and management by creating tools, resources, and partnerships for climate change adaptation - for wildlife, people, and ecosystems. Alisa holds a B.A. in Political Science (University of California Santa Barbara), a Masters of Public Administration (San Jose State University), a Masters of City and Environmental Planning (University of California Berkeley), and earned her Ph.D. in Earth Sciences at Colorado State University. She completed postdoctoral research with the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS, UC Santa Barbara), investigating salmon distribution and vulnerability under climate change throughout their North Pacific Rim range. Her most recent research has included assessing and mapping species’ exposure and potential adaptive capacity to climatic change and investigating how land-use modification compounds climate change-related impacts to biodiversity. She often uses spatial models to inform conservation planning, working at the nexus of human-environment interactions, and she is fascinated by resource issues at the urban-rural interface. Previously, Alisa served as a co-author of the Montana Climate Assessment and as program coordinator for UM BRIDGES, the National Research Traineeship (NRT) for graduate studies at the food-energy-water (FEW) nexus at the University of Montana. She remains an affiliate with the Department of Geosciences at the University of Montana.


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