PhD student Mingyu Zhao, mentored by Dr. Aaron Thompson, has received the NASA-MSU Professional Enhancement Award for his research on the Wetland Reserve Program’s impact on flood mitigation in the Great Lakes Region. The recognition is particularly meaningful as it commemorates the 25th anniversary of the award founded by Dr. Jianguo (Jack) Liu to support emerging leaders in the field of landscape ecology. Thanks to support from this award Mingyu was part of a cohort of graduate students receiving support to attend the 2026 Meeting of North American Regional Chapter of the International Associate for Landscape Ecology in Athens, Georgia where he presented his research titled, “Revisiting the effectiveness and applicability of the Wetland Reserve Program.”