Science on Tap continues its 2025–26 season!
Join the Flathead Lakers and Flathead Lake Biological Station for a relaxed evening of science and storytelling with Dr. Kyle Bocinsky, Director of Climate Extension for the Montana Climate Office.
📅 Date: Thursday, November 6, 2025
🕡 Time: 6:30 PM
📍 Location: The Cellar at Flathead Lake Brewing Company, Bigfork
Reserve your seats today
Living in a Changing World: Climate Resilience at the Crown of the Continent
The Northern Rocky Mountain region is experiencing rapid climate change, with rising temperatures, shifting precipitation patterns, and increasing extremes such as flash droughts and atmospheric rivers. This presentation explores observed trends and future projections for the Crown of the Continent and surrounding region, drawing on high-resolution CMIP6 climate models and multiple emissions scenarios. Projections show warming of 4–5°F by century’s end, more days above 90°F, and seasonal shifts in precipitation—wetter winters and drier summers—impacting snowpack, streamflow, and water availability. As the headwaters of major North American river systems, Montana’s hydrologic future has regional and continental implications. The Montana Mesonet and new tools like the Drought Monitoring Dashboard provide critical, localized data to support decision-making. This talk highlights the importance of accurate monitoring, community engagement, and proactive adaptation to build resilience in the face of a changing climate—empowering residents, landowners, and resource managers across western Montana to navigate what lies ahead.
🎟 Tickets: $5
🍻 Food and drinks available from the FLBC Pubhouse
Your ticket supports the Flathead Lakers’ mission to protect clean water through research, outreach, and action.
About the Speaker
Dr. Kyle Bocinsky is the Director of Climate Extension for the Montana Climate Office and an Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Society and Conservation at the University of Montana. He specializes in cross-disciplinary, computational approaches to studying resilience in socio-ecological systems, with a focus on high-elevation arid agricultural systems. Kyle works with users of climate data across Montana—from agriculture and forestry to recreation and urban planning—and partners closely with Native Nations to support their climate resilience goals.
He also holds appointments at the Desert Research Institute and the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center. Kyle loves life in the Northern Rockies, especially spending time outdoors with his husband, daughters, and dogs.