An Integrated Ecosystem Model for Alaska and Northwest Canada

The Integrated Ecosystem Model is designed to help resource managers understand the nature and expected rate of landscape change. Maps and other products generated by the IEM illustrate how arctic and boreal landscapes are expected to alter due to climate-driven changes to vegetation, disturbance, hydrology, and permafrost. The products also provide resource managers with an understanding of the uncertainty in the expected outcomes.

Our Role
Funder

Project Leader
University of Alaska Fairbanks

Partners
USGS Alaska Climate Science Center, Western Alaska Landscape Conservation Cooperative, Arctic Landscape Conservation Cooperative

Contact
Amy Breen: [email protected]

More information
IEM Project Website
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​Project Report

​Project Datasets

Topics
Adaptation, Climate Change, Land Use Planning

Approaches
Data or Knowledge Synthesis, Decision-Making Tools, Scientific Research

Examples of IEM outputs include vegetation (land cover, treeline extent, growth and carbon dynamics, growing season length), disturbance (wildfire, secondary succession, thermokarst), permafrost (active layer depth, ground temperature, subsidence), and hydrology (soil moisture, thaw lake dynamics, patterned ground dynamics). Potential secondary impact model applications include habitat assessment, fire risk, access for subsistence, and identifying hotspots of change. Image: IEM Project