Duke University and the University of Georgia are partnering with leaders from the insurance and climate data industries to launch the Center for Innovation in Risk, Catastrophes, and Decisions (CIRCAD), a new initiative focused on advancing insurance innovation and large-scale risk mitigation amid escalating climate disasters, the Pratt School of Engineering announced.

Nicholas Institute experts Lydia Olander and Sara Mason were among leaders from 20 states, academics, nonprofit experts and private sector partners who gathered in August for the annual State Resilience Planning Group, convened by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The group shared best practices and lessons learned to increase disaster resilience, with a focus on how to leverage nature and innovative infrastructure solutions.

N.C. Gov. Josh Stein appointed Duke University expert Lydia Olander as an at-large member of the North Carolina Land and Water Fund Board of Trustees. Olander directs the Nature Activation Hub—hosted by the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability—and is an adjunct professor at the Nicholas School of the Environment.

Almost a year after Hurricane Helene, western North Carolina is rebuilding, and communities and businesses across the state are reckoning with the increased likelihood of extreme weather events. In June, the Nicholas Institute worked with the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality to bring together stakeholders from across the state to develop ideas for rebuilding stronger and safer.

Rep. Deborah Ross convened state officials and experts Wednesday to discuss what North Carolina needs to prepare for and recover from flood events, WUNC reported. Nicholas Institute expert Lydia Olander explained part of the problem is that flood models are not giving communities a true picture of the risks they face.

"We've reviewed the reports that are coming out. They're not really answering the questions that the communities need answered to make decisions about how to make them more resilient," Olander said.

Duke University researchers have launched a public dashboard tracking the progress and impact of nature-based solutions efforts along the East Coast. The new resource will provide updates on projects led by the Atlantic Conservation Coalition, which includes state governments in Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia, in addition to The Nature Conservancy. Eighteen additional organizations are also partners in the effort.

Duke experts are exploring ways to enhance community resilience to extreme weather events. Lydia Olander and Francis Bouchard joined engineering professor Mark Borsuk in leading a 2024-2025 Bass Connections team exploring community-based catastrophe insurance.

Nicholas Institute experts Sara Mason, Lydia Olander, and Katie Warnell shared insights from their collaboration and development of the Department of the Interior Nature-Based Solutions Roadmap in a Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center webinar.

As part of its "Disaster 101" series, Duke Today interviewed emergency managers and Duke experts to try to make sense of layers of governments, regulations and communications involved in emergency response and rebuilding. Although experiences differ, common lessons in community and relationship building emerge in their stories.

Looking for a summer project? Undergraduate and graduate students are invited to apply for summer 2025 Climate+ research projects.

The Climate+ projects are part of the broader Data+ program and offered by the Nicholas Institute in partnership with the Rhodes Information Initiative at Duke. All Plus Programs run 10 weeks over the summer and are composed of small project teams working on real world solutions using data science, programming, coding, and analysis. 

The Nature Activation Hub brings together tools, guidance and resources to help decision-makers and practitioners integrate nature's benefits into decision-making. The hub builds on the Nicholas Institute’s two decades of actionable research and purposeful partnerships focused on nature-based solutions, ecosystem services and natural and working lands.

The Nicholas Institute, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of the Interior, developed an interactive version of the DOI Nature-Based Solutions Roadmap with a new database of more than 400 case studies. One of the Nicholas Institute experts who led the project discusses some of the resource’s features and its applications for DOI staff and beyond.

NESP engages more than 2,000 public and private sector stakeholders to enhance collaboration within the ecosystem services community and strengthen coordination of policy, market implementation, and research at the national level. NESP’s research, products, and regular webinars help advance innovative, sustainable approaches to managing natural resources.

Today the United States Department of the Interior launched a digital Nature-Based Solutions Roadmap, developed in partnership with the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment and Sustainability at Duke University. This free public resource will serve as a user-friendly and accessible guide for implementing nature-based solutions.

Nicholas Institute experts Martin Doyle, Lydia Olander and Tim Profeta recently served one- or two-year terms with federal entities. They discuss their temporary assignments—and what they brought back to Duke.