BELFAST— This winter, the Belfast Garden Club Evening Lecture Series co-sponsored by the All of Belfast Climate Dialogues, a project of the Belfast Free Library, will focus on the effects of the climate crisis on our forests, farms and gardens.

The first program will occur on Tuesday, January 25 at 6:30 p.m.  Dr. Ivan Fernandez from the Climate Change Institute at the University of Maine will feature a talk entitled Maine’s climate future: The role of carbon management in farms and forests.

The talk will be offered on zoom. To register and receive the Zoom link, please go to https://belfastlibrary.org/virtual-programs.

Dr. Fernandez’s presentation will address three main topics. First, he will summarize key findings from climate assessments focused on Maine, primarily Maine’s Climate Future reports and the assessment report of the Maine Climate Council’s Scientific and Technical Subcommittee. Then, he will discuss how farms and forests can contribute to what are often called ‘Natural Climate Solutions’.

He will also talk about soil and soil health, primarily considering soils on farms, and how enhancing the soil’s organic carbon can promote both the resilience of the soil in light of climate risks as well as contribute to reducing atmospheric carbon concentrations. The presentation will also summarize forest management recommendations from the recent Governor’s Task Force on a Forest Carbon Program in Maine.

Dr. Fernandez is a Professor in the School of Forest Resources, Climate Change Institute, and School of Food and Agriculture at the University of Maine. He has served on various U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Science Advisory Board committees in Washington, D.C. since 2000. He represents the University of Maine in the USDA Northeast Climate Hub and has been involved in leading the Maine’s Climate Future assessments in 2009, 2015, and 2020.  He currently serves on the Maine Climate Council as co-chair of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee and a member of the Natural Working Lands working group.

The Evening Lecture Series continues February 22 with a talk called “Growing Food and Ornamentals in a Changing Climate” with speakers Haley Jean and Sara Keleman and on March 22 with a talk, “Deep Woods: How Climate Change Impacts Forests & How Forests Slow Climate Change” with speakers Mark Berry and Nicholas Fisichelli. For more information visit belfastlibrary.org/events or belfastgardenclub.org.