Charting a course for Colorado River water for a sustainable future


ASU professor Dave White rafting the Colorado River as a graduate student

In 1998, ASU Professor Dave White, then a social sciences graduate student (pictured above), set out to raft the Colorado River through Grand Canyon National Park. The experience inspired passion and bolstered his commitment to ensure the sustainability of the lifeblood of the American West — the Colorado River.

Nearly two decades later, the Colorado River faces its most significant challenges in the form of a drought, climate insecurity and the overallocation of its water to seven U.S. states and Mexico.

How do we navigate the rapids of water management without capsizing under growing demand? White, who directs ASU’s Decision Center for a Desert City and is a professor in the School of Community Resources and Development, explains how to stay afloat. 

White's talk is part of the ASU KEDtalks series. Short for Knowledge Enterprise Development talks, KEDtalks aim to spark ideas, indulge curiosity, and inspire action by highlighting ASU scientists, humanists, social scientists and artists who are driven to find solutions to the universe’s grandest challenges. Tune in monthly to research.asu.edu/kedtalks to discover how the next educational revolution will come about, whether space is the next economic frontier and more.

Faculty, School of Community Resources and Development, Community, Environment and sustainability, Policymakers, Environment, Sustainability, Knowledge Enterprise, Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions

More Environment and sustainability

 

Wind damage on a Louisiana home from Hurricane Katrina

How can we future-proof homes against environmental risks?

Nearly every year, the rising human and economic toll of natural hazards in the U.S. sets new records. Documented in the Spatial Hazard Events and Losses Database for the United States, there is…

Willow Springs Lake is a 150-acre cold-water reservoir located atop Arizona's Mogollon Rim in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests. Groundwater  recharge rates range from less than 1% in some Arizona groundwater basins to more than 10% of annual precipitation along the Mogollon Rim. Photo courtesy of Zakhari Volk (Creative Commons).

ASU researchers contribute to Arizona’s quest to sustain aquifer

According to a report recently released by Arizona’s three state universities, most of the precipitation that falls in the state is evaporated back into the atmosphere, underscoring an urgent need to…

Person dousing their head with water from a water bottle as the sun shines down on them.

How the experts weather Arizona summers

We all do our best to survive the Valley’s scorching summer heat, counting down the days until we can once again experience the weather we’re here in Arizona to enjoy.But sometimes our best is…