National Nature Assessment

The challenges of climate change and nature loss are interconnected. Yet, the significance of nature in recent patterns of intensifying floods, heat stress, and wildfire is often overlooked. More frequent and extreme floods are the result of climate change and the extensive loss of wetlands that once acted as buffers, reducing some flood impacts. More intense heat waves stem from climate change and the loss of forests’ cooling canopies in cities and around farms. These interacting aspects of global change need to be understood and confronted together.

To better understand the full picture of what is happening with nature, USGCRP is undertaking a National Nature Assessment, which will take stock of U.S. lands, waters, wildlife and the benefits they provide to our economy, health, climate, and national security. The Assessment will also look ahead at how nature might change in the future, and what those changes may mean for our economy and our lives.

The First National Nature Assessment is in the early stages of development and is anticipated to be released in 2026. As with other USGCRP assessments, the National Nature Assessment will draw on expertise from the Federal Government, Indigenous communities, academia, non-profit organizations, and the private sector. The Assessment team will hold an array of public engagement opportunities to ensure the report answers questions that are important to every American’s life, and is informed by the best available evidence.

For more information and updates on the National Nature Assessment, please subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on social media.

First National Nature Assessment Participant Roles and Responsibilities

• A Federal Steering Committee is responsible for the development, production, and content of the assessment as well as high-level scoping to ensure coherence, and relevance. The Federal Steering Committee (with concurrence from the Subcommittee on Global Change Research) selects Federal Coordinating Leads and Lead Authors; based on a number of criteria, including expertise and experience with the relevant products.

• Federal Coordinating Lead Authors work across chapters to ensure consistency throughout the report and adherence to development guidance. Coordinating Lead Authors are also the points of contact to the Chapter Leads.

• Chapter Leads are selected from a pool generated in part by a public nominations process. In consultation with Federal Coordinating Lead Authors, Chapter Leads organize, direct, and lead authorship of individual chapters. Chapter Author teams are established by the Chapter Leads with suggestions from the Federal Coordinating Lead Authors and the Federal Steering Committee. Chapters are submitted to the corresponding Federal Coordinating Lead Author, and ultimately transmitted to the Federal Steering Committee as the individual input of the Chapter Leads.

• Chapter Authors are selected by the Chapter Leads in consultation with the Federal Coordinating Lead Author and Federal Steering Committee, based in part on nominations via the public call. They are responsible for developing chapter content. Chapter author teams work with Chapter Leads to develop draft chapters and edit those materials in response to comments received during the multiple rounds of review.

• Technical Contributors provide limited, requested inputs into chapter development. They are selected on an as-needed basis, for specific needs identified by the author team. Technical Contributors may be selected from the pool of publicly nominated authors.

• Review Editors are selected by the Federal Steering Committee from a pool of experts, including those generated through a public nomination process. Their role is to ensure that authors respond adequately and provide sufficient justification for their responses to all comments received during the public and National Academies review periods.

These are the confirmed authors of the First National Nature Assessment (NNA1), listed by chapter. We expect to confirm additional authors on some chapters. For questions regarding the First National Nature Assessment, please contact USGCRP Engagement and Communications Lead Jamel Jackson, jjackson@usgcrp.gov 

Frameworks and Approaches for Assessing Nature in the U.S.

Chapter Lead: Katie Arkema, Senior Earth Scientist, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and University of Washington

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Jessica Welch, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (on behalf of NASA Earth Science Division)

Authors:
Shanondora Billiot, Arizona State University
Emerson Conrad-Rooney, Boston University
Nfamara Dampha, University of Minnesota
Mary Fisher, University of California Davis
Aaron Grade, U.S. Global Change Research Program 
Robert Griffin, Environmental Protection Agency
Bonnie Keeler, University of Minnesota
Josh Lawler, University of Washington
Teresa Mathews, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Lydia Olander, Duke University
Steven Posner, Garrison Institute
David Schimel, NASA Jet Propulsion Lab

Nature and Equity in the U.S.

Chapter Lead: Chris Schell, Assistant Professor, University of California Berkeley

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Brenda Rashleigh, Assistant Center Director for Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Authors:
Isabelle Anguelovski, Institute of Environmental Sciences and Technology (ICTA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA)
Jade Begay, Tesuque Pueblo
Diego Ellis-Soto, University of California Berkeley
Nyeema Harris, Yale University
Max R. Lambert, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
Beth Rose Middleton Manning, University of California Davis
Rachel Morello-Frosch, University of California Berkeley
Steward Pickett, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies
Paige Warren, University of Massachusetts

Bright Spots in Nature in the U.S.

Chapter Lead: Timon McPhearson, Professor and Director, Urban Systems Lab, The New School; Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Emmett Duffy, Chief Scientist, Tennenbaum Marine Observatories Network and MarineGEO Program, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Authors:
Jack Algiere, Stone Barns Center
Christine Angelini, University of Florida
Lindsay Campbell, USDA Forest Service
Eric Chu, University of California Davis
Loan Diep, The New School
Scott V. Edwards, Harvard University
Isaac Gertman, MICA Graphic Design
Nancy Knowlton, Smithsonian Institution (emerita)
Ariel Lugo
Melissa Nelson, Arizona State University
Pooja Tandon, University of Washington and Trust for Public Land
Kathleen C. Weathers, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies

Status, Trends and Future Projections of Nature in the U.S.

Chapter Lead: Gillian Bowser, Associate Professor, Colorado State University

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Gabrielle Canonico, Manager, U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Marine Life Program and U.S. Marine Biodiversity Observation Network, NOAA/U.S. IOOS

Authors:
Kofi Akamani, Southern Illinois University
Meena Balgopal, Colorado State University
John Coley, Northeastern University
W. Chris Funk, Colorado State University
Sérgio da Silva Henriques, Indianapolis Zoo
​​Brian Helmuth, Northeastern University
M Nikki Grant-Hoffman, USDA
Tashiana Chanté Osborne, USAID
Pam Templer, Boston University
Arathi Seshadri, USDA
Mark Urban, University of Connecticut
Kim Waddell, University of the Virgin Islands
Lisa D. White, University of California at Berkeley

Status, Trends and Future Projections of Drivers of Change of Nature in the U.S.  

Chapter Lead: Danielle Ignace, Assistant Professor, The University of British Columbia

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Maureen Kearney, Program Director, National Science Foundation (NSF), Division of Environmental Biology

Authors:
Melinda Adams, University of Kansas
Steve Allison, University of California Irvine
George Hurtt, University of Maryland
Forest Isbell, University of Minnesota
Sammy Matsaw, Jr., Shoshone-Bannock Tribes
Alex Moore, University of British Columbia
Robert Newman, University of North Dakota
Luiz Rocha, California Academy of Sciences
Jenna Sullivan-Stack, Oregon State University
Heather Throop, Arizona State University
Kimberly Yazzie, Stanford University
Bruce Young, NatureServe
 

Nature and Climate Change in the U.S.

Chapter Lead: Chris Field, Director, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Carolyn Balk, Section Chief, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Authors: 
William R. L. Anderegg, University of Utah
Jill S. Baron, US Geological Survey
Stephen R. Carpenter, University of Wisconsin
Ailene K. Ettinger, The Nature Conservancy
Avery P. Hill, California Academy of Sciences
Scott Loarie, iNaturalist
Malin L. Pinsky, University of California at Santa Cruz
Lauren T. Toth, US Geological Survey
Amy G. Vandergast, US Geological Survey

Nature and Cultural Heritage in the U.S.

Chapter Lead: Rachelle Gould, Associate Professor, University of Vermont

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Nicole Herman-Mercer, Research Social Scientist, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) - Southwest Climate Adaptation Science Center

Authors:
Bradley Allf, North Carolina State University
Steven Gray, Michigan State University
Heidi E. Kretser, Wildlife Conservation Society
Kirsten Leong, NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
Philip Loring, The Nature Conservancy
Devon Pena, University of Washington
Sammie Powers, George Mason University
Steven Richter, East Carolina University
Archana Sharma, USDOT, Morgan State University
 

Nature and the Economy in the U.S. 

Chapter Lead: Rajat Panwar, Associate Professor, Oregon State University

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Inoussa Boubacar, Research Economist, USDA Forest Service / Forest Products Laboratory

Authors:
Pamela Bachman, Bayer Crop Science
Uris Lantz Baldos, Purdue University
Marc Berejka, REI
Brian Buma, Environmental Defense Fund
Y. Allen Chen, NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center
Jaana Korhonen, USDA, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, ORAU
Theresa Lieb, GreenBiz Group
Ashley Lowe Mackenzie, University of Hawaii
Jakki Mohr, University of Montana
Stephen Polasky, University of Minnesota
Anthony Rogers, California Ocean Science Trust
John Whitehead, Appalachian State University
 

Nature and Human Health and Well-Being in the U.S. 

Chapter Lead: Howard Frumkin, Professor Emeritus, University of Washington

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Monika Derrien, Research Social Scientist, USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station

Authors:
Timothy M. Bowles, University of California Berkeley
Gregory Bratman, University of Washington
Matthew H. E. M. Browning, Clemson University
Lora Fleming, University of Exeter (emerita)
Anne Guerry, The Natural Capital Project, Stanford University 
Kyle X. Hill, University of Minnesota
Peter James, Harvard University
Michele Kondo, Northern Research Station, USDA Forest Service
Alexandra Lawrence, USDA NRCS
Richard Ostfeld, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies
Amber Pearson, Michigan State University
Taylor Ricketts, University of Vermont
Alessandro Rigolon, University of Utah
Jennifer Roberts, University of Maryland
 

Nature and Risk, Resilience, and Security in the U.S. 

Chapter Lead: Todd Bridges, Professor of Practice, Resilient and Sustainable Systems, College of Engineering, University of Georgia

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Safra Altman, Research Ecologist, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Engineer Research and Development Center

Authors:
Brian Bledsoe, University of Georgia
Keith Bowers, Biohabitats
Maria Dillard, NIST
Joseph Fargione, The Nature Conservancy
Monica Grasso, NOAA Office of Chief Financial Officer
Marccus Hendricks, University of Maryland
Ellen Herbert, Ducks Unlimited
Becca Muenich, University of Arkansas
Robert Nairn, University of Oklahoma
Laura Norman, US Geological Survey
Ariana Sutton-Grier, US Geological Survey
Kristin Tremain Davis, AECOM
Bret Webb, University of South Alabama

Opportunities for Nature and People in the U.S.

Chapter Lead: Patricia Soranno, Professor, Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University

Federal Coordinating Lead Author: Chris Kelble, Director, Ocean Chemistry & Ecosystems Division, Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Authors:
Elena Bennett, McGill University
Kevin Elliott, Michigan State University
Erle Ellis, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Adrienne L. Hollis, National Wildlife Federation
Viniece Jennings, Florida A&M University
Tanya Pelach, Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians
Leopoldo “Leo” Miranda-Castro, Conservation Without Conflict
Stephanie Quinn-Davidson, Ridges to Riffles
Mónica D. Ramírez-Andreotta, University of Arizona
James Rattling Leaf, Sr, North Central Climate Adaptation Center, University of Colorado, Boulder
Sheri Spiegal, USDA
Merissa Zuzulock, FEMA Office of Resilience Strategy