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| Midwest Biodiversity Institute | |
|---|---|
| Name | Midwest Biodiversity Institute |
| Formation | 1998 |
| Type | Nonprofit research institute |
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
| Region served | Midwestern United States |
| Leader title | Director |
| Leader name | Dr. Elena Martinez |
Midwest Biodiversity Institute is a regional nonprofit research and conservation organization focused on documenting, studying, and restoring biological diversity across the Midwestern United States. The Institute works with universities, museums, federal and state agencies, and tribal governments to generate inventories, conduct applied research, and implement habitat restoration projects. Its activities span taxonomy, ecology, conservation planning, and public outreach to inform policy, land management, and education.
Founded in 1998 by a coalition of doctoral researchers from University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign, Ohio State University, and University of Michigan, the Institute emerged from collaborative projects linked to the Long-Term Ecological Research Network and the National Biological Information Infrastructure. Early collaborations included partnerships with the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago Botanic Garden, and the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. The 2000s saw rapid expansion following grants from the National Science Foundation and project awards from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Environmental Protection Agency. Strategic growth included a 2011 memorandum of understanding with the Great Lakes Commission and programmatic ties to the Nature Conservancy and the Audubon Society chapters in the region. During the 2010s the Institute contributed data to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and participated in regional responses to invasive species challenges exemplified by collaboration on threats such as the Emerald ash borer and Asian carp.
The Institute's mission emphasizes biodiversity assessment, evidence-based restoration, and capacity building for Midwestern landscapes. Key objectives include establishing standardized species inventories aligned with the Integrated Taxonomic Information System, supporting conservation prioritization used by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and state natural heritage programs, and producing open-access datasets compatible with the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and the Biodiversity Heritage Library. Objectives also stress workforce development via internships tied to programs at Purdue University, Iowa State University, and University of Wisconsin–Madison and the dissemination of findings at forums such as the Society for Conservation Biology and the Ecological Society of America.
Research themes integrate taxonomy, landscape ecology, and restoration science. Taxonomic initiatives have produced voucher-based inventories in collaboration with the Field Museum of Natural History and the University of Michigan Herbarium, contributing specimen records to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Landscape-scale studies use remote sensing datasets from the USGS Landsat program and modeling frameworks developed alongside researchers at Stanford University and Yale University to address habitat fragmentation linked to agricultural conversion in the Corn Belt. Programs include pollinator health projects co-led with Xerces Society chapters and freshwater biodiversity monitoring with partners such as the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and the U.S. Geological Survey. The Institute disseminates peer-reviewed work through journals like Conservation Biology, Ecological Applications, and Journal of Applied Ecology.
Conservation work ranges from prairie restoration to wetland rehabilitation. Major projects have restored remnant tallgrass prairie fragments in coordination with the Chicago Wilderness partnership and prairie seed networks tied to the National Seed Strategy. Wetland restoration efforts in the Mississippi River Delta corridor have been implemented with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and state departments such as the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Species-focused actions have included recovery planning for pollinators referenced by the Pollinator Partnership and reintroduction trials for native freshwater mussels in collaboration with the American Fisheries Society. The Institute also supports invasive species management informed by guidance from the Invasive Species Advisory Committee and regional rapid response teams.
The Institute maintains formal agreements with a broad network including academic institutions like Northwestern University and Michigan State University, museums including the Cincinnati Museum Center, federal agencies such as the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and nonprofits like the Nature Conservancy and the Sierra Club Midwest Chapter. International ties extend to research groups affiliated with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and data-sharing with the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Collaborations support student fellowships co-sponsored with the Fulbright Program-affiliated researchers and professional exchanges with experts from the Smithsonian Institution.
Primary facilities include a research campus near Chicago, Illinois with herbarium and entomological collections curated to standards compatible with the Integrated Digitized Biocollections network. Collections house voucher specimens deposited in partner repositories including the Field Museum of Natural History and the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. Laboratories support molecular work using protocols standardized with the National Center for Biotechnology Information sequence databases, and a citizen science data portal interoperable with iNaturalist and regional biodiversity atlases.
The Institute is funded through a mix of competitive grants from the National Science Foundation, cooperative agreements with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, philanthropic support from foundations such as the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, corporate sponsorships, and fee-for-service contracts with state agencies. Governance is overseen by a board of directors drawn from leaders affiliated with University of Chicago, Ohio State University, and conservation NGOs including the Nature Conservancy. An advisory council includes representatives from tribal nations such as the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and state natural heritage programs.
Category:Environmental organizations based in the United States