Northwest Climate Adaptation Science Center

Patrick Austin Freeland is the new Senior Tribal Climate Resilience Liaison for the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI). Patrick is Este Hotvltvlke Mvskokvlke (Wind Clan, Muscogee Nation of Oklahoma) and brings a deep commitment to advancing sovereignty and fostering collaborative efforts to address climate change. His approach intertwines traditional wisdom with contemporary educational and scientific methods, emphasizing core values of Sovereignty, Relationality and Responsibility.

A first-generation college graduate from Haskell Indian Nations University and Purdue University, Patrick’s journey through creative writing, Indigenous studies and ecological sciences has shaped his multifaceted approach to climate adaptation science and serving Indigenous Nations. His interdisciplinary expertise in science, arts and engineering drives his mission to advance human and environmental well-being. Patrick has dedicated nearly two decades to the convergence of climate change adaptation, higher education and the advancement of Indigenous Peoples. He is steadfast in his commitment to research ethics, data sovereignty and the healing of intergenerational trauma. Join us in welcoming Patrick Freeland to the ATNI Climate Resilience Team!

What led you to work in the field of climate adaptation?

I must first acknowledge my Elder, Mentor and Relative Dr. Dan Wildcat, who encouraged me through my undergraduate education at Haskell Indian Nations University and has guided me into the space of climate change adaptation throughout my educational and professional career. I am citizen of the Mvskoke Nation from Oklahoma and I follow in the footsteps of my Grandmother, Beulah King-Simms, who was a fighter and passionate advocate for Indian Education and Tribal Sovereignty, and my Mother Cecelia Kay Freeland, who always reminded me that “you have to help the Earth.” Countless colleagues and relatives have been on this journey with me to recognize the power that Indigenous wisdom and knowledge has in concert with sciences, arts and engineering. My role, and my place within this world, is guided by vales of honor, pride, and respect, and a commitment-to-action to serve Indigenous Peoples and Tribal Nations, and all Peoples, in our shared response to this challenge of our generation.

My educational journey at Haskell Indian Nations University and Purdue University instilled in me a dedication to academic excellence and civic engagement, fostering a rich exchange of knowledge across generations and cultures. My studies were centered on (re)building Native Nations, climate adaptation and ecological resilience. My interdisciplinary research focused on research ethics; non-cognitive development; human impacts on biosphere processes; and advancing educational, technological and scientific initiatives for Indigenous communities.

My professional background has been at the convergence point of higher education (Tribal College and Universities primarily), organizational development, and climate adaptation, with an approach rooted in fostering meaningful relationships and broad representation for marginalized and underrepresented communities. I embrace a multidisciplinary perspective to inspire community-driven change through agreement-making and collaboration. As climate change has so many dimensions that affect both biotic and abiotic processes, much of my personal commitment is to recognize the human element — to promote healing and peace-making and to foster community unity, knowledge sharing, effective use of media and information technologies, and intercultural communication.

What does your day-to-day work look like?

Every day is different, but there are some common threads that weave through my daily routine. I am privileged to work with a phenomenal team within the ATNI climate resilience program, including Kylie Avery, the Assistant Tribal Climate Resilience Liaison, and Kieren Daly-Laursen, ATNI’s Climate Fellow. Our collaboration extends across other programs within ATNI, such as the Energy Program with liaison Elijah Duncan-Gilmour, and the Natural Resources Program with managers Tanya Eison-Pelach and Taylor Aalvik.

I dedicate a significant portion of my time to learning about services and resources that our Tribal partners can access so that I may share them effectively. This involves engaging with the latest sciences and advancements in technologies for climate resilience, as well as understanding federal, state, and Tribal policies that are most relevant to our member Nations. As a liaison, the most important aspect of my day-to-day work is making time to connect and interface with the many Tribal members, experts, professionals and allies of the NW Climate Adaptation Science Center and our ATNI member Tribes. Many Peoples make up our collective commitment to addressing climate change and implementing resiliency strategies, plans, and most importantly, action. This interaction is the heart of my work and drives our collective efforts towards a more resilient future.

How does your organization support climate resilience in the Northwest?

The ATNI Climate Resilience Program supports climate resilience in the Northwest through a comprehensive approach that centers partnership and consensus-building with our member Tribes and allies. Our vision is to provide guidance in developing and implementing administrative and legislative actions related to Indigenous Peoples and climate change. We focus on knowledge exchange and approaches to address climate change impacts to Tribes and Indigenous communities, with strategies that honor Tribal Sovereignty, Treaty rights and trust resources. We emphasize the need for immediate government-government consultation on climate impacts, and we advocate for Tribal consultation and respectful engagement that connects us to resources, such as funding and expertise, to better advance Tribal climate resilience.

This program has a legacy of over ten years of successful service to Tribes and partners in this region. In June 2014, in partnership with the Institute for Tribal Government, the ATNI Climate Change Project has been committed to four principle goals: (1) ensure ATNI member Tribes are engaged and aware of the federal/state/Tribal climate change programs; (2) serve as a clearing house for and coordinator of Tribal and inter-Tribal efforts; (3) support ATNI’s participation in regional, national and international climate policy, adaptation and mitigation efforts; and (4) support ATNI member Tribes in identifying and securing climate change funding to build Tribal capacity.

Everything we do is through partnership. Through the collective actions of countless individuals, organizations, agencies and Nations, our achievements are a testament to the relationships made and shared commitment to addressing climate change and implementing resiliency strategies. It is also just as important to acknowledge our many Ancestors who sacrificed much so that we may be here today to continue to serve our Peoples. This work is not just about responding to climate change, but about building a resilient future for our member Tribes and all who are connected with one another.

What is your favorite thing about your work?

What I appreciate most about this role is the opportunity to foster relationships and meaningful connections with many People from many Nations and walks of life. I deeply value the trust that forms the foundation of these relationships and I respect the process and time it takes to build that trust, understanding that it is built gradually and is essential for navigating change at various scales. I have been privileged in the past few years to learn about and engage emerging technologies in large-scale data synthesis and sovereign-network systems that may provide rapidly accelerated decision-making for Tribal Nations. I can also see how both ecological restoration and greenhouse-gas reduction and mitigation will accelerate with Tribal Nations leading as partners. I look forward to advancing these technologies and services.

I look forward most greatly to what we will achieve together, learning from the wisdom of our Elders and knowledge-holders and connecting with our Youth and next generations of climate resilience professionals. Embracing my role as a “boundary-spanner”, I am committed to serving our many Peoples in service and friendship. I am grateful to work with such an outstanding team and to be included in a greater network of Tribal Climate Liaisons and affiliated partners in higher education, research and development, and policy-making, all committed to addressing climate change resilience. It truly is an honor to serve in this role, and I will do my best to serve responsibly and ethically with Eyasketv (Humility), Vrakkueckv (Respect) and Fvcetv (Integrity).

We are excited to announce that Alison Ainsworth has joined our NW CASC Advisory Committee! Alison Ainsworth is a science advisor and ecologist for the National Park Service (NPS) and an affiliate assistant professor in the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences at the University of Washington (UW). Ali serves as a co-director of the Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit, providing a suite of federal partners access to university-based applied natural and cultural research, technical assistance and education. She has represented NPS on numerous committees and panels, and has a professional focus on plant community ecology, tropical fire ecology and climate adaptation science.

Prior to working in the Pacific Northwest, she spent three years as the terrestrial ecologist at Death Valley National Park and over twenty years in Hawaiʻi working in conservation for multiple NPS units and the State of Hawaiʻi. Throughout her career, she has worked closely on conservation issues with Indigenous and native communities throughout the Pacific Islands, Mojave Desert and currently in the Puget Sound watershed. Ali earned a bachelor’s in resource ecology and management from the University of Michigan, a master’s in fire ecology from Oregon State University, and a doctorate in botany from the University of Hawaiʻi. She has authored numerous journal articles, is currently serving as a review editor for Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution and represents the NPS on the guidance committee for the USGS Biodiversity and Climate Change Assessment.

What led you to work in the field of climate adaptation?

Lava-ignited wildfires in the Hawaiian rainforest! I was drawn from the Midwest to the Hawaiian Islands by the incredible fern diversity in the 1990’s. As a new field biologist, I learned that the rainforests, with their abundant tree ferns, were too wet to carry wildfire despite decades of continuous lava ignition sources. This conventional wisdom was soon proven incorrect with the rapidly increasing wildfire frequency and severity observed over the next three decades. Non-native plant invasions coupled with unprecedented droughts and shifting climatic conditions have contributed to these novel patterns and subsequent habitat type-conversions. After fighting these fires, I completed my master’s degree on the post-fire recovery and predicted pathways leading to non-native fern and grass fire cycles. Unfortunately, this pattern may now be playing out in temperate wet forests of the Pacific Northwest. I hope to apply some lessons learned from other systems to support novel climate adaptation science in this new region facing the daunting threat of increasing frequency and severity of wildfire in systems previously known to have very long fire return intervals. I am also particularly interested in the vulnerability of high-elevation plant species to shifting climatic conditions.

What does your day-to-day work look like?

Ultimately, my goal is to ensure that federal land managers have access to the best available science, technical support and educational opportunities by connecting their natural and cultural resources management and social science needs with university, state agency and non-profit partners through the Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit. Primarily, as an employee of the National Park Service, I focus on the needs of NPS Units, but in my co-director capacity at the UW, I also support the other federal partners (e.g., U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Department of Defense) with this mission. This translates into a lot of matchmaking. Specifically, I attend many meetings, participate in multiple landscape scale partnerships, work closely with financial assistance staff and continue to research and learn as much as I can about current and future predicted needs and advances in climate adaptation science.

How do your organization and work support climate resilience in the Northwest?

The National Park Service, like USGS, has a strong emphasis on building climate resilience within all park units. Activities in the Pacific Northwest NPS units range widely, some examples include: high-elevation meadow protection and climate modeling, documenting glacial retreat, focused seed genetic testing and storage, endangered butterfly rearing and habitat protection, intensive dam removal projects with full watershed restoration in collaboration with multiple Tribes, and state and federal agency climate-adapted road construction efforts.

Currently, the NPS is recruiting for two postdoctoral fellows in the Northwest to assess climate resilience by (1) mapping and modeling old growth forest vulnerability and by (2) developing an effective ecosystem service valuation tool for sagebrush steppe and other at-risk ecosystems that will inform and help prioritize management actions. While there are notable efforts underway, it is more critical than ever that agencies, Tribes and non-federal partners work together to share knowledge and resources to build climate resilience on the appropriate temporal and spatial scales.

What is your favorite thing about your work?

All the amazing people across so many disciplines that I engage with and learn from. It is thrilling to see how fast climate adaptation science is advancing and the creative way managers are applying this science on the ground. I am inspired by the ease with which the younger generations navigate new technologies and look forward to future green advancements. I hope in my science advisor role to help with critical technology transfer between researchers and land managers. It is essential to ensure that new information is available for management application and simultaneously that new challenges and questions from the field are transferred to those continuing to rapidly advance climate adaptation science.