Climate Solutions
Anticipating the Future. Acting in the Present.
Climate change is reshaping how we live, and not in abstract terms. It impacts how we plant and harvest, how we build our homes, how we manage water resources, and how we plan for futures we can’t yet fully imagine.
At the Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE), researchers from across the University of Illinois collaborate to respond. Teams of climatologists, economists, and social scientists work together to develop climate models that project local heat and flood risks, to guide land and water management and inform policy-relevant solutions.
We focus on turning research into results. The goal? To provide data, tools, and strategies that are science-based, locally informed, and ready to support sound decisions.
Focus Areas
- Agricultural Impacts
Evaluating how crops will respond to a changing climate. - Climate Modeling and Forecasting
Building regional climate projections and high-resolution models to inform planning, policy, and infrastructure. - Nature-based Carbon Removal
Evaluating the potential of land management practices like reforestation and enhanced rock weathering to sequester carbon. - Community Resilience
Supporting local governments, land managers, and agencies with data, scenarios, and adaptation tools. - Science-informed Decision-making
Providing data and guidance that translate climate research into practical action across sectors.
Featured Researchers
Lisa Ainsworth
Professor of Plant Biology and Crop SciencesProfessor Ainsworth is a leading expert in plant responses to global climate change. For more than two decades she has played a central role in the Soybean Free Air Concentration Enrichment (SoyFACE) Center in Savoy, Ill., where scientists study how rising carbon dioxide and ozone levels affect crops in real field conditions. As part of the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI) and the Agroecosystem Sustainability Center (ASC), her work combines experimental field trials with advanced modeling to improve crop resilience, water use, and nutrient efficiency, helping farmers adapt to a changing climate while protecting natural resources.
Impact Highlights
Illinois leads most rigorous agricultural greenhouse gas emissions study to date
This study revealed how soil, weather, and management practices drive nitrous oxide emissions, and provided the first high-resolution, field-level emissions estimates across the country. The findings offer a scientific foundation for climate-smart agricultural policies and practices that reduce emissions without compromising productivity.
Field trials of enhanced rock weathering quantify carbon removal potential
Applying ground-up silicate rock to Midwestern farm fields can capture significant amounts of carbon dioxide and prevent it from accumulating in the atmosphere, according to an Illinois study that successfully quantified those climate benefits for the first time.
Midwest CASC-supported models are being applied by local governments
These models are used to assess infrastructure risks and update resilience plans relating to key challenges in the Midwest: heavy precipitation events and drought, the loss of winter, altered hydrological regimes, and barriers and opportunities for adaptation.
University of Illinois scientists explore how paddlefish adapt to temperature changes
By better understanding paddlefish physiology and their responses to warmer temperatures, management decisions may be made to better support this commercial fish and the economies that rely on it.