There is enormous water expertise across many disciplines at UCLA, but spread among many departments and schools.
The UCLA Water Resources Group is composed of faculty and researchers from the IoES and across the campus who have expertise in water resources, here in California, the nation and around the world. The Water Resources Group creates a “portal” for the public to identify experts across the campus, helps faculty and researchers work together, and create partnerships with governments, companies and nonprofits to address the big water challenges the world faces.
All around the globe, extended drought, flooding, extreme storms and water pollution are serious problems, aggravated by climate change. Cities have long term water shortages and struggle to control pollution in water that affect the basic right to safe drinking water. Flooding becomes worse with climate change, channelization of rivers and urbanization coming too close to rivers and paving too much land. Industry and agriculture have been disrupted because of unpredictable water supplies. Too much diversion of water has dried up rivers, risking important fisheries, while water pollution degrades the water that both people and nature depend on. While many water providers have excelled at dealing with these problems, others are struggling to provide safe, reliable drinking water and work with consumers to conserve water.
Almost every solution to these problems requires some technology and institutional capacity to actually happen. However, these solutions cannot be realized without understanding the political and social culture, the economics, the water science and engineering and the law. UCLA has expertise across all of those areas and the UCLA Water Resources Group provides the connections for researchers to apply their work and work together to develop solutions that can be implemented.
For more information please contact Gregory Pierce.
Graduate Student Water Resources Group
There is also a Graduate Student Water Resources Group (GSWRG) organized by an Executive Committee of students across campus and mentored by the Director. This group solicits graduate students across campus who are interested in water, but reside in many different departments and schools. They put on seminars with invited guests and set up sessions where students present their work to each other for discussion. They circulate information about opportunities for funding and for research positions with faculty on water projects and internships off campus. To join the GSWRG, email UCLAWaterGrads@gmail.com or fill out this google form.
