Katie Warnell

Report · July 15, 2025 When Hurricane Helene struck western North Carolina in September 2024, the damage to homes, roads, and communities was devastating. Recovery will take years and is expected to cost more than $59 billion. But people weren’t the only ones affected—so were ra ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Evaluation of Publicly Accessible Nature-Based Solutions Databases as Sources for Evidence of Effectiveness

Report · July 24, 2024 Nature-based solutions (NBS) are “actions to protect, sustainably manage, or restore natural or modified ecosystems to address societal challenges, simultaneously providing benefits for people and the environment” (White House Council on Environmental Qual ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Department of the Interior Nature-Based Solutions Roadmap

Report · December 11, 2023 This comprehensive resource, created in collaboration with the US Department of the Interior, is a first-of-its-kind reference for implementing nature-based solutions (NBS). Nature-based solutions are actions to protect, sustainably manage, or restore natu ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Financing Nature-Based Solutions via the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund

Report · November 14, 2023 For the past decade, state and local green banks have successfully accelerated private investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and environmental infrastructure projects in their specific geographies. While green banks have historically focused p ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Assessing the Effects of Management Activities on Biodiversity and Carbon Storage on Public and Private Lands and Waters in the United States

Report · April 13, 2023 Natural and working lands (NWLs) provide many benefits to people, including storing greenhouse gases (GHGs), supporting biodiversity, and generating other ecosystem services. Management of NWLs can influence their condition and function and therefore the b ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Data from: Assessing the effects of management activities on biodiversity and carbon storage on public and private lands and waters in the United States

Dataset · April 6, 2023 Natural and working lands (NWLs) provide many benefits to people, including storing greenhouse gases (GHGs), supporting biodiversity, and other ecosystem services. Management of NWLs can influence their condition and function and therefore the benefits the ... Full text Cite

Developing a State-Level Natural and Working Lands Climate Action Plan

Internet Publication · October 13, 2022 Natural and working lands—forests, wetlands, coastal, and agricultural lands—provide many benefits, including supporting key economic sectors, enhancing community resilience to hazards such as fires and floods, and contributing to climate mitigation by sto ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Data from: Blue carbon mapping for six mid-Atlantic states

Dataset · June 22, 2022 Coastal habitats’ ability to store carbon makes them valuable assets in state and community efforts to support climate mitigation, but sea level rise (SLR) poses a major threat to these habitats and the carbon they store. The Nicholas Institute collaborate ... Full text Cite

Data and scripts from: Sea level rise drives carbon and habitat loss in the U.S. mid-Atlantic coastal zone

Dataset · May 31, 2022 Coastal marshes and seagrass beds store millions of tons of carbon in their sediments and sequester carbon at higher per-area rates than most terrestrial ecosystems. There is substantial interest in this “blue carbon” as a carbon mitigation strategy, despi ... Full text Cite

Tracking the Benefits of Natural & Working Lands in the United States: Dataset Evaluation and Readiness Assessment

Report · March 16, 2022 Natural and working lands (NWL) in the United States provide many benefits, including food, climate mitigation, recreational opportunities, jobs, and many more. There is currently no coordinated approach in the United States to track how provision of these ... Open Access Link to item Cite

GEMS Phase II Report: Coastal Restoration

Report · July 16, 2021 Billions of dollars will be spent on large-scale restoration of Gulf ecosystems over the coming decades, but there is currently no shared platform to guide assessment and reporting of restoration progress and effectiveness for the broad set of environmenta ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Pocosin wetland status and owner type for North Carolina

Dataset · June 30, 2021 Pocosins are a unique wetland type in the North Carolina coastal plain that provide valuable wildlife habitat and store large amounts of carbon in their peat soils. Many pocosins in North Carolina have been altered by drainage, land clearing, or plantation ... Full text Cite

Data from: Coastal protection and blue carbon mapping for six mid-Atlantic states

Dataset · December 3, 2020 Coastal habitats’ ability to store carbon and protect natural and human communities from hazards makes them valuable assets in state and community efforts to enhance coastal resilience and support climate mitigation. The Nicholas Institute collaborated wit ... Full text Cite

Mapping Ecosystem Services for the Southeast United States: Conservation and Restoration Priorities for Water Purification

Report · August 4, 2020 This methods brief focuses on water purification by natural land cover, which removes non-point-source pollutants from runoff water before they reach waterways. This analysis maps natural land cover within the likely flowpaths of water from agricultural ar ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Evidence Library for Oyster Reef Restoration in the Gulf of Mexico

Report · April 28, 2020 Billions of dollars will be spent on large-scale restoration of Gulf ecosystems over the coming decades, but there is no shared platform to guide assessment and reporting of restoration progress and effectiveness for the broad set of environmental, social, ... Open Access Link to item Cite

USFS Predictive Model Library: Fire and Timber Management

Report · April 17, 2020 The concept of ecosystem services has been formalized into U.S. Forest Service decision-making over the past decade in response to the 2012 Forest Planning Act and Agency regulations and directives, but many practical questions remain about how to do this ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Data from: Opportunity assessment for carbon and resilience benefits on natural and working lands in North Carolina

Dataset · March 24, 2020 These datasets show the biophysical extent of reforestation, restoration, and conservation opportunities for on-the-ground management actions for natural and working lands that sequester/store carbon and support habitat and community resilience in North Ca ... Full text Cite

Mapping Ecosystem Services for the Southeast United States: Conservation Priorities for Open Space Recreation Access

Report · March 12, 2020 This methods brief focuses on access to recreational open space, which is a key component of mental health and well-being. This analysis maps the supply of publicly accessible open spaces relative to where people live. Regional priority areas for the creat ... Open Access Link to item Cite

GEMS Phase I Report: Oyster Reef Restoration

Report · February 3, 2020 Billions of dollars will be spent on large-scale restoration of Gulf ecosystems over the coming decades, but there is no shared platform to guide assessment and reporting of restoration progress and effectiveness for the broad set of environmental, social, ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Mapping Ecosystem Services for the Southeast United States: Conservation Priorities for Recreational Birding

Report · October 31, 2019 This methods brief focuses on recreational birding, which is a popular activity in the United States. This analysis maps the location of recreational birding activity in the southeastern U.S. Regional priorities for conservation of birding areas are identi ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Mapping Ecosystem Services for the Southeast United States: Conservation and Restoration Priorities for Wild Pollinator Habitat

Report · September 27, 2019 Open Access Link to item Cite

Building Ecosystem Services Conceptual Models

Report · September 5, 2018 Funders and developers of infrastructure projects and businesses and managers overseeing critical natural resources are becoming increasingly aware of and interested in ecosystem services. Although methods for incorporating ecosystem services into decision ... Open Access Link to item Cite

Ecosystem Services Conceptual Model Application: Bureau of Land Management Solar Energy Development

Report · September 5, 2018 Interest in using ecosystem services to integrate considerations of people and the environment continues to grow in federal agencies. One method that can help agencies incorporate ecosystem services into decision making is the use of ecosystem services con ... Open Access Link to item Cite