View Source | September 14, 2013
Senior Sustainability Scientist and School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment professor Enrique Vivoni says economic, social, and political cooperation is needed to ensure a sustainable future for the southern Arizona and Sonora, Mexico region. To assist, Vivoni created the U.S. Mexico Border Water and Environmental Sustainability Training program (UMB-West) to bring together ASU and Mexican faculty and students to investigate major water scarcity issues and possible solutions.
Students researched water plant dynamics in a semi-arid climate and completed their own studies using civil engineering methods and community-based surveying.
"It was surprising to see how the research, or lack of research, can really have an impact on a whole community," says Seth Morales, a civil engineering student. "It was amazing to see people living in the same hot summer climate as in Arizona, but without abundant water resources. Some homes only have access to water every three days for a two-hour window."