Developed to inform the 2013 National Climate Assessment, and a landmark study in terms of its breadth and depth of coverage and conducted under the auspices of the U.S. Global Change Research Program, Climate Change in the Midwest examines the known effects and relationships of climate change variables on the eight states that make up the region.
 
This state of the art assessment comes from a broad range of experts in academia, private industry, state and local governments, NGOs, professional societies, and impacted communities. It highlights past climate trends, projected climate change and vulnerabilities, and impacts to specific sectors.

Julie Winkler is a professor of Geography at Michigan State University. She is interested in many aspects of geography and climatology including synoptic and applied climatology, regional climate change, and climate scenario development and evaluation. Current and past research topics include heavy precipitation, nocturnal thunderstorms, low-level wind maxima, airflow within midlatitude cyclones, wildland fire risk, and the possible impacts of potential future climate change particularly on agriculture. Much of Professor Winkler's research has focused on the Central Plains and Great Lakes region of the United States.