Projects & Products Overview

As of January 2025, the Midwest Climate Adaptation Science Center has funded 45 research projects. Each of these projects is producing science to help fish, wildlife, water, land and people adapt to a changing climate. In this new series of graphics, we explore project topics, partners, and impacts. Scroll down to explore, or download the full infographic as a pdf.

Tackling Management Challenges in the Midwest

MW CASC projects are responsive to five key challenges faced by resource managers in the Midwest: heavy precipitation events and drought, the loss of winter, altered hydrological regimes, and barriers and opportunities for adaptation. The following graphic shows the management challenges addressed by each of our projects, with the largest categories being altered hydrological regimes (15 projects) and barriers and opportunities for adaptation (12 projects).

A bar graph showing how which challenges MW CASC projects respond to. Detailed image description is linked in caption. — View detailed image description.

Impact Across the Region

MW CASC projects are designed to inform management of natural and cultural resources in the Midwest. The map below shows how many individual projects are producing research relevant to each state.

A map of the Midwestern US showing projects relevant to each state. Detailed image description is linked in the caption. — View detailed image description.

Hundreds of Products in the MW CASC's First Four Years

The MW CASC helps get actionable research into the hands of resource managers through presentations, reports, workshops, research publications and many other formats. In total, MW CASC projects have produced more than 450 products. Many more are coming soon, as more than 40 projects are currently in progress. The graphic below shows just a few of the most common types of products.

Graphic showing project products in different categories. Detailed image description is linked in caption. — View detailed image description.

Supporting Collaborative Science

The MW CASC produces relevant, actionable science through hundreds of partnerships with a diverse group of individual and organizational partners across the Midwest, representing the academic, government, nonprofit, and private sectors. The MW CASC demonstrates respectful engagement with Tribes in research and knowledge exchange. The following graphic shows the most common affiliations of individual MW CASC partners.

Student Engagement in Research

37 graduate students work on MW CASC projects, gaining experience in collaboration and the coproduction of science. Through applied research experience and participation in MW CASC skills-building and networking opportunities, early career researchers are prepared to join the workforce as the next generation of natural resource professionals.

On the left, a blue and white illustration of a student in a lab coat using a magnifying glass to view something in a test tube. Text on the right reads: “37 graduate students are working on MW CASC projects.”

Serving Our Region

The MW CASC produces science to support the work of state, federal, and tribal agencies in the Midwest. The graphic below shows a selection of these partners, including the US Fish & Wildlife Service, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the US Forest Service, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, the National Park Service, and many others.

Logos of 37 MW CASC partners. Detailed image description linked in caption. — View detailed image description.