Research and outreach activities on drought planning and mitigation are conducted largely through the National Drought Mitigation Center’s (NDMC) program, located in the School of Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The NDMC’s mission is to lessen societal vulnerability to drought through a risk-based management approach. Historically, the approach to drought management has been through crisis management, an approach that has been largely ineffective and untimely. This reactive approach has increased society’s reliance on government and donors, thereby increasing vulnerability to future drought events. A preferred approach is to emphasize risk-based management that seeks to reduce economic, social, and environmental impacts. As population and demand for water and other natural resources increase, society must learn new techniques to cope with extreme climate events such as drought. Research is being conducted by the NDMC’s faculty and staff on drought monitoring and early warning tools, climate indices, drought risk assessment techniques, and drought mitigation and planning methodologies to improve the ability of local, state, and national governments to cope with future drought events. The NDMC also works with many international and regional organizations and foreign governments in fostering drought preparedness worldwide.