About the AgClimate Network

The AgClimate Network is a web-based hub for communication between regional scientists and stakeholders about climate change and agricultural and natural resources topics. A consortium of institutions including Oregon State University, University of Idaho, and Washington State University, and the United States Department of Agriculture Northwest Climate Hub support individuals who contribute content to this site and share articles and analyses. Our editorial team and frequent contributors are listed on our Editorial Team page. To contact specific authors please send your comments via our Ask a Question page.

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Funding Acknowledgements

The effort that resulted in the AgClimate Network website and its materials has been supported by numerous research projects over time, including the following:

Technology for trade: new tools and new rules for water use efficiency in agriculture and beyond (2018-2023).

This USDA-NIFA funded project is developing information technologies and complementary innovations in the rules that govern water use. In particular, the team aims to further the development and application of three promising and complementary emerging technologies: improved seasonal forecasting, remote measurement of crop water consumption, and computer-aided ‘smart’ water markets.  In addition, legal, regulatory, and contractual innovations can be important to allow water users to use these technologies as effectively as possible while protecting the water rights of others. This research and extension project is supported by USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s project #1016467.

The USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hatch project #1015637 (2018-2021). 

This project supported the Water Umbrella group, an integral part of an extensive group of water researchers, educators, and extension professionals at Washington State University (WSU). As population growth and variable weather patterns place increasing demands on water supply, solutions for water quantity and quality issues will require interdisciplinary research and societal action. The Water Umbrella Group provides an agile and dedicated research group from multiple academic disciplines within WSU to find solutions to complex scientific and social issues related to water resources that are vital to Washington and globally.

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Food-Energy-Water Nexus (2016-2022)

An NSF-funded project exploring innovations in storage that improve resilience. The project explores how rapid population growth, economic development, and the impacts of climate change are likely to alter water, energy, and agricultural resources in the future. By improving our understanding of the relationships and interdependencies between these three sectors, the project hopes to contribute to the development of innovations that can balance the benefits between food, energy and water sectors and enhance the resilience of these sectors. This project has been funded by NSF EAR grant #1639458, USDA grant #2017- 67004-26131, and the Washington State University Graduate School.

The Fruit & Vegetable Supply Chains: Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Opportunities project (2017-2021)

A co-led by Dr. Senthold Asseng at the University of Florida and Dr. David Gustafson of the ILSI Research Foundation, and includes partners at WSU. The project is using crop modeling, economic modeling, and environmental modeling to determine current and future climate and water availability impacts on yield, quality, price, and environmental profile of carrots, green beans, oranges, potatoes, spinach, strawberries, sweet corn, and tomatoes. The focus is on strategies and land use changes resulting from relocation of crops from California to new regions in the Pacific Northwest and Southeast.

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Regional Approaches to Climate Change (REACCH) (2011-2018)

A coordinated agricultural project, funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture under award number 2011-68002-30191 to enhance the long-term sustainability of cereal production systems in the Pacific Northwest. Through research, extension, and education, REACCH integrated diverse elements of climate modelling, cropping system modelling, social and economic science, agriculture and agronomy, and crop protection to address climate adaptation and mitigation concerns relating to wheat-based agriculture. REACCH maintains a website with resources resulting from the project.

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The Animal Agriculture and Climate Change project (2011-2017)

A national extension project that aimed to build capacity among Extension to foster animal production practices that are environmentally sound, climatically compatible, and economically viable. The project, led by Washington State University, engaged six partner Land-Grant Universities to address regional issues associated with climate change and animal agriculture. Funding came from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) via its Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) competitive grants program. This project was facilitated through the online, web-based Livestock & Poultry Environmental Learning Center (LPELC). This national, web-based environment facilitates networking and extends the availability and utility of extension resources on the environmental concerns of animal agriculture.

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BioEarth (2011-2017)

An NSF- and USDA- funded project under award number #2011-67003-30346 led by WSU to create a regional earth system modeling framework for the Pacific Northwest by integrating a network of process-based models. The framework includes atmospheric models (for meteorology and atmospheric chemistry), land surface models (for hydrology, cropping systems, and biogeochemical cycling), aquatic models (for reservoir operations and nutrient export in rivers), and economic models. A central goal of the project is to enhance the relevance of regional earth system models to resource managers and other decision-makers.

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Watershed Integrated Systems Dynamics Modeling (WISDM, 2012-2017)

A WSU-based USDA-funded project that built on the BioEarth modeling framework to improve understanding of interactions between water resources, water quality, climate change, and human behavior in agricultural and urban environments. Basin-scale social-environmental interactions are being modeled in the Spokane and Yakima River basins in a collaborative system dynamics modeling process that involves close interaction with water users and managers.