Reflections on Climate Change from the Next Generation
We want to thank Tate Oliva for her time as the Climate Program Youth Science Intern this past winter! Through Tate’s internship, she learned how climate change is effecting the ecosystems of the Klamath-Siskiyou. Combining Tate’s passion for photography and being outside, Tate captured photographs of the many ecosystems in the area to be used in KS Wild’s climate smart advocacy, which aims to address how climate-smart conservation practices can be applied in the region.
Growing up in the Rogue Valley has sometimes felt like living inside a fairytale. Ever since I was three and moved to Ashland, I have been able to explore the nature of our region: from Lithia Park and Emigrant lake to the Klamath and Rogue rivers to the backcountry of Mt. Ashland and Grizzly Peak. I have seen black bears in our forests and salmon in our rivers and experienced some of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the country.
Sadly, growing up here, I have also watched as our valley has become increasingly affected by the climate change that is occurring across the globe. From increasingly hot and dry summers to more impactful fire seasons each summer, I have seen the detriments of climate change all around me. Upon learning how human behavior has led to the global crisis of climate change, I was motivated to try and help our valley and surrounding ecosystems to be more resilient and protected against the consequences of our current climate emergency.
This spring, I started a climate-smart internship with KS Wild in order to learn more about how climate change is affecting our local ecosystems and find my role in combating and acting on the threats that climate change poses to my home. I was inspired to start learning more about climate change and its effects by the Almeda Fire of last fall, which devastated the communities of Ashland, Talent, and Phoenix. I have always loved nature, and with my newfound passion for science, I thought working on a project related to the rapidly changing climate and its effects on local ecosystems was the perfect way to learn and also act on behalf of the outdoors I have grown up exploring.
I have learned that the rapid change in global temperature and climate systems is causing mass disturbances in our ecosystems. From more fires and droughts to increased pests like the pine beetle causing tree loss, climate change has already begun to affect the streams, forests, animals, and people of the Rogue Valley and surrounding areas. Working with KS Wild, I’ve had the opportunity to go out and photograph some of the amazing ecosystems in our area that will face threats of climate change. As someone who's always loved the outdoors, the opportunity to go out and hike in and around Ashland to these beautiful places has been a great experience. From the tall pines of the Ashland watershed and the high elevation forests of Mt. Ashland to the dry shrublands out across I-5, our region hosts some of the most beautiful and biodiverse ecosystems on the west coast.
The photographs that I have taken through my internship with KS Wild will be compiled into a Climate Smart Guide that aims to address how climate-smart conservation practices can be applied to the Rogue Valley and surrounding areas. The guide will be essential in guiding action to combat climate change’s effects, and could be a model for other communities across the country. Climate-smart Conservation is the process of incorporating climate considerations into land and resource management and nature conservation.
The goal for my work with KS Wild is to make a direct impact on the health and conservation of our local ecosystems and the animals and plants of this area, while also learning more about climate change science. Using science and activism to protect wilderness and the outdoors is one of the things I am most passionate about and with the threat of climate change looming larger each year, I feel that this is a time where my actions, and anyone's actions, can truly make a difference.
Tate Oliva is a junior at Ashland high school who grew up in and around Ashland and the Rogue Valley. She is a recording artist and aspiring photographer passionate about climate, environmental science, and activism. She has been accepted to study environmental policy next summer in Copenhagen, Denmark. In the future Tate hopes to pursue environmental science as a career, and to raft more rivers!