Workshops
October 29, 2008: "Focusing Arizona's Water Research: A One Day Workshop"
This workshop was co-sponsored by AWI and the AZ Water Association (formerly AWPCA), and was held at the Fiesta Inn Resort in Tempe, AZ. Many important researchers in the area gave presentations on Arizona's water supply research needs. Below, please find the presentations from the speakers. Attendance list is available here.
- Westerhoff, "Update on Detection & Treatment of Emerging Contaminants"
- Arnold, "Managing Salt in Southern Arizona"
- Fox, "Nature's Way - Soil Aquifer Treatment"
February 4-5 2008: "Climate Change Adaptation for Water Managers Workshop"
On February 4-5, the "Knowledge Systems for Sustainable Development Workshop on Climate Change Adaptation for Water Managers - Beyond Brainstorming: Exploring Adaptation Tools and Strategies” Workshop was held at the Biosphere 2 in Oracle, Arizona.
The goal of the workshop was established as: To assist Arizona water managers (and water managers in the west) identify specific adaptation and response strategies to climate change impacts on groundwater and surface water supplies.
- Over 60 faculty, researchers, and water managers were in attendance (see list here).
- For a poster for the workshop, please click here.
- For an agenda of the workshop, please click here.
Workshop Outcomes
An executive summary for the workshop is posted here. A full report on the workshop, outcomes, and goals is currently in progress with an expected completion date of March 31, 2008. Please check back here for additional information as its gathered or feel free to contact us (see below for contact information).
Workshop Supplemental Materials
We are pleased to offer as reference, handouts used at the workshop:
- Barnett, Tim P., et al - "Supporting Materials and Methods for 'Human-induced Changes in the Hydrology of the Western United States'"
- Barnett, Tim P., et al - "Human-Induced Changes in Hydrology of the Western United States"
- Enquist, Carolyn - "Conceptual Management Approaches to Climate Change Adaptation"
- Frisvold, George - "Linkages between Climate Change - Hydrologic Information and Decisions"
- McKinnon, Shaun - AZ Republic article 02/01/08 - "Climate-Change Realities Could Ruin Water Planning .pdf"
- Milly, P.C.D., et al - "Stationarity is Dead: Whither Water Management?"
Workshop Organizer Contact Information
For additional information on this workshop, please feel free to contact either Kathy Jacobs, Arizona Water Institute via email kjacobs@azwaterinstitute.org or Gregg Garfin, Institute for the Study of Planet Earth (ISPE) via email gmgarfin@email.arizona.edu.
November 26, 2007: "AWI Conference on Climate Change and Higher Education in Arizona"
Held in Tempe, Arizona; moderated and coordinated by Kathy Jacobs. This statewide event investigated the role of higher education in addressing social and physical issues associated with climate change, and reflected on whether our research and educational efforts will be adequate to face the challenges. To see the Agenda, please click here.
Conference Speakers
- UA President Robert Shelton: "Science and Communication - Public Awareness and the Role of Universities"
- NAU President John Haeger: "The Economic Implications of Climate Change"
- ASU President Michael Crow: "The Future of Higher Education in the Context of Sustainability and Climate Change"
- Board of Regents members Ernest Calderon and Fred DuVal
- Featured Speakers Patricia Gover (ASU), Bruce Hungate (NAU), and Johnathan Overpeck (UA)
October 15-17, 2007: Binational Field Trip of the Lower Colorado River Delta Region
Held in Arizona and Sonora, coordinated by Placido dos Santos and the Binational Institute.
September 27-28, 2007: Water Work Table meeting of the Border Governors Conference
Held in Puerto Penasco, Sonora; coordinated by Placido dos Santos and the Binational Institute.
August 6, 2007: AWI Salinity Research Workshop "Improving Salinity Management and Desalination Technology for Brackish Water Resources in the West"
Held in Tempe, Arizona; coordinated by Chuck Graf. A workshop to establish an agenda for applied research. To view the workshop outcome document, please look
here. The final report for this workshop can be found here, and the two page fact sheet can be found here.
June 20-21, 2007: "20th Anniversary of the Environmental Quality Act and ADEQ: Assessing and Protecting Arizona's Water Quality Conference"
A Water Resources Research Center Conference held in Phoenix, Arizona and co-sponsored by Kathy Jacobs and Chuck Graf.
March 23, 2007: Decadal Predictions Workshop
On March 23, 2007 a workshop was held that was organized jointly by the US CLIVAR program and a research project at the University of Arizona and the University of Washington, titled "Integrating Improved Water Supply Predictive Capacity and Response into Lower Colorado Basin Policy and Management." This research project, jointly funded by the Bureau of Reclamation and the University of Arizona, is a stakeholder-driven, interdisciplinary project focused on helping Reclamation use climate predictions at various time scales in managing the Colorado River. FOne of the components of Phase II of our project is helping to define a research agenda to help focus research on the potential for predictive capacity in the 1-3 year time frame. This idea came directly from multiple stakeholders in Arizona.
This topic has also been raised in the context of a NOAA project in support of CLIVAR, and efforts are currently underway to establish a limited life-time working group on decadal prediction, to help focus research and make funding agencies aware of opportunities in this area across multiple sectors and regions. Although it is clear that we are a long way from good predictive capacity in the 1 to 10 year time frame, there is significant progress being made in understanding decadal oscillations. The US CLIVAR program has agreed that it would be useful to focus on what research has already been done in this area, and identify areas where progress could be made in the relatively short term. There is a need to understand the characteristics of the 1-3 and 1-10 year fluctuations, implications for regions, and potential applications of improved information, among other topics.
For an agenda of this meeting, please click here.
For outcomes of this meeting, please click here.
March 20-23, 2007: "Climate Prediction Applications Science Workshop"
The National Weather Service Climate Services Division in conjunction with the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group, hosted the 5th CPASW in Seattle, Washington March 20-23rd. Kathy Jacobs coordinated and moderated. To see the agenda please look here.
Workshop Goals
The workshop brought together a diverse group of climate science producers and users to share developments in research and applications related to the use of climate predictions in societal decison-making. The meeting goals were:
- To Identify new climate prediction applications research
- To "build community" by promoting interactions between integratedclimate-sensitive research and service communities
- To assess impacts of climate forecasts on environmental-societal interactions, and
- To provide feedback to producers of climate products on user requirements.
Workshop Outcome
To view the workshop outcome document, please look here.
February 27, 2007: Water Expo at the Legislature
Held in Phoenix, Arizona, attended by Chuck Graf and Bennett Curry.