In the mid-atlantic region (including delaware, district of columbia, maryland, virginia, and pennsylvania) stormwater management remains a primary focus for preparedness and risk reduction as…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration awarded the RAND Corporation a cooperative agreement of $1.1 million on September 1, 2026, under the Climate and Atmospheric Research program (CFDA 11.431) to support the Mid-Atlantic Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (MARISA) 2.5 initiative, operating through August 31, 2027.

MARISA 2.5 delivers decision-relevant data, information, and tools to help Mid-Atlantic stakeholders across Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania reduce risk from extreme weather and flooding. The initiative operationalizes neighborhood-scale heat and flood analyses for Baltimore City, delivering real-time warning systems and GIS-based decision tools co-developed with city partners. A second project pilots a compound flood modeling framework for coastal areas. Additional work assesses extreme weather impacts on infrastructure and communities across scales, advances local-, state-, and regional-scale risk reduction and adaptation capabilities, builds workforce capacity through engagement with students and adaptation professionals, and evaluates program impacts to guide future regional priorities.

Place of performance is Santa Monica, California. RAND Corporation operates as the prime recipient, a nonprofit policy research organization headquartered in Santa Monica that delivers evidence-based research and policy analysis to federal agencies. The Climate Program Office within NOAA's Oceanic and Atmospheric Research division administers the award under scientific merit and peer review criteria.

In the mid-atlantic region (including delaware, district of columbia, maryland, virginia, and pennsylvania) stormwater management remains a primary focus for preparedness and risk reduction as localities across the region, including coastal areas, struggle to cope with extreme precipitation and flooding events. Extreme heat events are also increasing, affecting stakeholders across the region. The mid-atlantic regional integrated sciences and assessments (marisa) team will support decision-making related to these and other extreme weather challenges by building on our relevant regional knowledge and established stakeholder relationships. Marisa 2.5 will address the following overarching question: how can mid-atlantic stakeholders be best supported to leverage actionable data to make informed decisions about reducing their risk to hazards and extreme weather impacts? Our objectives are to (1) assess and address the impacts of extreme weather on infrastructure and communities across scales in the mid-atlantic region; (2) advance capabilities and increase capacity for local-, state-, and regional-scale risk reduction and adaptation through the CO-production of decision-relevant and actionable data, information, and tools; (3) build workforce capacity through engagement with students, adaptation professionals, and regional partners; and (4) evaluate program impacts and regional adaptation efforts to assess progress, identify gaps, and guide future priorities for marisa and the region overall. Stemming from meaningful discussions with a broad range of stakeholders to improve understanding of risk and response actions, and to help reduce risks to communities and infrastructure, marisa 2.5 consists of 4 projects: project 1 operationalizes completed neighborhood-scale heat and flood analyses for baltimore city, delivering real-time warning systems and GIS-based decision tools CO-developed with city partners. Project 2 will pilot a compound flood modeling framework for coastal virginia to produce high-resolution estimates of current and future flood risk from combined hazards. Project 3 solidifies marisas role as an integrated decision-support resource by organizing existing data and tools into workflows that help practitioners use hazard information to design decisions and guide planning. Project 4 evaluates how marisa and other regional products support adaptation in practice and pilots a regional assessment framework for inland flooding. Together, these projects advance NOAA priorities on protecting against extreme weather and environmental hazards and managing too much and too little water while remaining grounded in a decade of science, partnership, and demonstrated impact across the mid-atlantic region.