Colin Tetreault is not one to sit around and wait for something to do. He’s the senior policy adviser for sustainability at the Phoenix Mayor’s office. He’s a faculty associate with ASU’s School of Sustainability. He’s the inaugural president of the school’s alumni chapter, having earned his master’s here in 2010. He is secretary of the board for the Greater Phoenix Green Chamber of Commerce and a director of the Valley Forward Association.

Perhaps more telling of his bustling nature, Tetreault managed in one weekend to squeeze in his wedding rehearsal, a presentation atTEDxPhoenix, his rehearsal dinner, his wedding, and an Ironman Triathlon.

It’s fitting that the dynamic Tetreault, dressed in suit and green tie, graced the cover of the Phoenix Business Journal’s special 40 Under 40 superhero section.

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Check out these links to recent video about our favorite subjects: water, climate change, and other interesting things.

Research Universities and the Future of America. The National Research Council presents critically important strategies for ensuring that our nation's research universities contribute strongly to America's prosperity, security, and national goals. In this video, members of the study committee that authored this report discuss the importance of our research universities and their contributions to our economy and society. They conclude by discussing the challenges and opportunities they face at a time of fiscal stress and international competition.

Monsoon Season Set To Start In Arizona. ASU climatologist Randall Cerveny says that although monsoon season begins June 15, after the National Weather Service recently defined this date as the monsoon's new seasonal start, forecasting the actual start of the Arizona monsoon remains cloudy.

The First 70: A journey through California to document the closure of 70 state parks.

All The Water It Takes To Produce A Burger. The water footprint of an object can be hard to wrap your head around. This video gives you a good sense of exactly how much water--everything from growing the cow’s food to making the bun--goes into your last burger.

How Road Maps Were Made in the 1940s. Over at The Atlantic's video channel, Kasia Cieplak-Mayr von Baldegg shows us (courtesy of the Prelinger Archive) Caught Mapping, a 1940 educational film from Chevrolet. The show demonstrates how road maps were made at the time. It captures the entire process, from field surveillance for route updates to photographing a fresh map using the largest camera you've ever seen to create a negative for press production. Of course, Chevrolets are strategically scattered throughout.

Dust Storm Swallows City. Pretty much self-explanatory when you live in the Phoenix metro area.

Sustainable Development and the Tragedy of Commons. Stockholm whiteboard seminars: Elinor Ostrom explains how people can use natural resources in a sustainable way based on the diversity that exists in the world.

It’s no secret that living in Arizona during the summer can be quite the battle. With record temperatures soaring up, a group of experts specializing in how state residents can sustainably cope with these blistering sun rays gathered at the Global Institute of Sustainability last week to provide answers. The presentation touched on past, present, and the prospective future of dealing with the inevitable long, hot Arizona summers.

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Almost one year ago, ASU graduate students and Laboratory of Algae Research and Biotechnology (LARB) student workers Joshua Wray, Martha Kent, and Emil Puruhito were granted the P3 Award from the EPA for their project "Developing Commercially Viable Culture Media from Wastewaters Optimized for the Emerging Microalgae-based Biofuel Industry."

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On December 15, 2011, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. and environmental, business and public health and safety leaders came together at The Governor's Conference on Extreme Climate Risks and California's Future.

The Governor's Conference focused on the threats of unpredictable and extreme weather events on the state's economy, business sectors, public health and natural resources. Attendees discussed the best ways to prepare and protect our state and adapt to these growing risks.

The Governor's Conference built on the findings of a United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report outlining the link between global warming, extreme weather events and their economic impact.

You'll find unique examples of California-based climate change adaptation, innovation and mitigation strategies. This video was shown on 12/15/11 during Governor Brown’s "Extreme Climate Risks and California’s Future" conference at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, California. Produced by Cal EMA Public & Crisis Communications Division.

The DCDC Annual Report covers the NSF reporting period of September 1, 2011-August 31, 2012 and is available on the Vision, Mission, and Strategic Goals page of our website.

DCDC II’s conceptual approach posits that the uncertainties of climate change affect individual and societal alternatives (adaptation decisions), which function through an urban system with economic feedbacks and distributional (social and spatial) consequences. Points of focus for our interdisciplinary research agenda are: 1) climatic uncertainties, 2) outcomes (economic feedbacks, urban system dynamics, and distribution effects), and 3) adaptation decisions. Activities cutting across these themes are simulation modeling and boundary studies.

Sander van der Leeuw, the dean of the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University, is among the six winners of the 2012 United Nations Champions of the Earth award. Professor van der Leeuw, an archaeologist and historian by training, was recognized in the science and innovation category for his research in human-environmental relations and the scientific study of innovation as a societal process. He is one of 51 champion laureates who have received the UN award since it was launched in 2005.

The Champion of the Earth honor is the UN flagship environment award that recognizes outstanding visionaries and leaders for their inspiration and action on the environment. The list of previous champion laureates includes former U.S. Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore, Mexican President Felipe Calderón, Chinese actress and environmental advocate Zhou Xun, Biomimicry Institute President Janine Benyus and former Soviet leader and Noble Peace Prize winner Mikhail Gorbachev.

Read more at ASU News.

Water, People, and Sustainability—A Systems Framework for Analyzing and Assessing Water Governance Regimes

Authors

Arnim Wiek (1) and Kelli L. Larson (1, 2)

Abstract

Freshwater resources might become the most limited resource in the future due to rising demands, climate change, and the degradation of aquatic ecosystems. While the urgency of this challenge is uncontested, water governance regimes still struggle to employ suitable responses. They lack of: taking a comprehensive perspective on water systems; focusing on social actors, their actions, needs, intentions, and norms as drivers of water systems; engaging in a discourse on tangible goals to provide direction for governance efforts; and promoting a comprehensive perspective on water sustainability that equally recognizes depletion, justice, and livelihood issues in the long-term. We present an approach that intends to overcome these limitations by putting the focus on what people do with water, and why, along with the impacts of these doings. First, we outline an integrated approach to water governance regimes, and then, we present a holistic set of principles by which to evaluate sustainable water governance. Solution-oriented research applying this approach integrates natural sciences and engineering perspectives on water systems with social science studies on water governance, while also specifying and applying normative principles for water sustainability. The approach we develop herein can be used to reform and innovate existing water governance regimes as well as stimulate transformative governance research.

Conclusions

Solution-oriented research on water sustainability ultimately intends to provide guidance on what stakeholder groups need to do differently. The ultimate goal is to transition to water governance regimes that better comply with sustainability principles: optimizing economic and social welfare in an equitable manner without compromising the viability and integrity of the supporting ecosystems in the long term. However, this question is a separate research stream, namely, on transition paths and interventions, which is often confounded with analytical (what is the current regime?) and normative questions (how sustainable is the current regime?) addressed in the present article. The present article focuses on the systemic understanding and evaluation of regional water governance regimes and prepares, but does not include, studies on how to realize transitions from current to sustainable governance regimes. Future research is needed to apply and further develop the approach with respect to its conceptual robustness (set of sustainability principles and assessment methodology) and its applicability in participatory and collaborative water modeling and other governance activities. Yet, with an integrated perspective on actors and activities, the approach in its present form provides initial guidelines for the redesign of water governance regimes towards sustainability.

Read the article here. Subscription may be required.

(1) School of Sustainability, ASU

(1) School of Sustainability, ASU and (2) School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, ASU

Sander van der Leeuw, the dean of the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University, is among the six winners of the 2012 United Nations Champions of the Earth award. Professor van der Leeuw, an archaeologist and historian by training, was recognized in the science and innovation category for his research in human-environmental relations and the scientific study of innovation as a societal process. He is one of 51 champion laureates who have received the UN award since it was launched in 2005.

The Champion of the Earth honor is the UN flagship environment award that recognizes outstanding visionaries and leaders for their inspiration and action on the environment. A feature on the ASU News website includes a video and a photo slideshow.

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At the behest of the director of the Tierra Madre Horse Sanctuary, three School of Sustainability (SOS) undergraduate interns worked to collaboratively develop a sustainable solution to the sanctuary’s horse manure problem.

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A Thought Leader Series Piece

By Ralf Wilde

Note: ASU and TÜV Rheinland in 2009 established a commercial joint venture in Tempe, Arizona – the TÜV Rheinland Photovoltaic Testing Laboratory. It is currently the world’s leading provider for PV technology testing.

Our modern definitions of sustainable development have come a long way from the earliest 18th century German paper about sustainable forestry. Over the last 25 years, however, the concept of sustainability has been stretched considerably to encompass a growing number of issues, ideas, and processes.

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Via AZ Central.com

The house where Dixie Ellis lives with her mother is perched on a mesa above town. It is a steep hike up the hill from Lake Powell, the second-largest man-made reservoir on the continent, and an easier walk up Arizona 98 from the Navajo Generating Station, one of the country's largest coal-fired power plants.

"Tourists ask me about it," Ellis said, nodding at the three 774-foot smokestacks that rise into the northern sky from the power plant less than 3 miles down the hill. "I tell them we don't even have running water or electricity. They can't believe it."

Ellis' mother, 96-year-old Sally Young, signed over part of her grazing lease to allow construction of the plant more than 40 years ago, one of hundreds of families that gave up land for a promise of jobs and a stronger economy. Her family said she was also promised water and power, promises that apparently never made it on paper.

"Other people are benefiting from it, but we're not getting anything," said Pearl Begay, Ellis' daughter. "No lights, no running water, just the smokestacks."

The power plant has emerged as an issue in a proposed water agreement between the federal government and the Navajo and Hopi tribes. The government has offered the Navajos an extra allotment of water if they will ensure that leases are renewed for the plant site and for a mine near Kayenta that supplies coal to generate electricity.

Read more: AZCentral.com

by Pete Zrioka, Arizona State University Office of Knowledge Enterprise Development

The American West has a drinking problem. On farms and in cities, we are guzzling water at an alarming rate.

Scientists say that to live sustainably, we should use no more than 40 percent of the water from the Colorado River Basin. As it is now, we use 76 percent, nearly double the sustainable benchmark.

There are some safeguards in place against water scarcity. The reservoir Lakes Mead and Powell can provide approximately five years of average annual stream flow at full capacity for insurance against low rainfall years.

But John Sabo, an associate professor in Arizona State University’s School of Life Sciences, believes that 50 years in the future – rather than five – should be the planning mark for water usage.

David White, co-director of ASU’s Decision Center for a Desert City (DCDC), says that Arizona water policy has done a good job of providing adequate supplies for the growth of the region up to this point. But environmental and demographic factors will likely require changes in that system. The DCDC uses research to inform environmental policy in times of uncertainty.

Read the entire article at ASU News.

The massive Lot 59 parking area, located between Sun Devil and Packard stadium, was notorious for being one of the most sweltering parking lots on ASU’s Tempe campus.

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Research universities – and notably their students – were singled out by administrators from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Environmental Protection Agency during an American Innovation for Sustainability forum that took place recently in the nation’s capital. Among the speakers at the forum were faculty members from Arizona State University, including ASU President Michael M. Crow.

“Students can increase the ability of research universities to organize research, coursework and experiential learning around the great challenges of the 21st century,” said Tom Kalil, deputy director for policy for the White House OSTP.

“This is important because universities conduct $55 billion in research every year," Kalil said. "They have strong ties to government, industry and philanthropists. They have expertise that spans science, engineering, social and behavioral sciences, the humanities, business, policy and law. So if more of this intellectual horsepower can be focused on important problems at home and abroad, I think this would be a good thing.”

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On April 25, 2012, Decision Center for a Desert City hosted their annual poster symposium. A highlight of the spring semester, graduate students enrolled in the Community of Graduate Scholars and undergraduate students participating in the Internship for Science-Practice Integration program presented the results of their DCDC research projects.

Community of Graduate Scholars (CGS)

The Community of Graduate Scholars is a year-long, one-credit course that gives graduate students the opportunity to become leaders in transdisciplinary approaches to research, policy, and community engagement.

Students work on Decision Center for a Desert City projects, as well as related efforts at ASU. Students are involved in multiple projects, examining the relationships among them, and thus learn to articulate and promote integrated perspectives.

DCDC faculty members are involved in interdisciplinary collaborations that offer rich opportunities to graduate students. Each CGS student works on a research team that includes one or more faculty members and both graduate and undergraduate students; this work provides them with the intellectual depth necessary to contribute to DCDC’s research.

CGS provides graduate students with a supportive environment where they can:

• develop a broad understanding of the research process and how it is practiced across sciences
• develop a professional and unique intellectual identity and voice
• improve scientific communication and presentation skills
• engage with researchers and community partners
• make contributions to DCDC as a boundary organization

Posters

• Envisioning Water Futures in the Greater Phoenix Area: What Do We Want The Future To Look Like? - Lauren Withycombe Keeler (CGS), Arnim Wiek, Dave White, Kelli Larson, and Kendon Jung
• Psychological Barriers to Water Conservation: The Case of Desert Landscaping - Rebecca Neel (CGS), Edward Sadalla, Susan Ledlow, Anna Berlin, Samantha Neufeld, Yexin Li, and Claire Yee
• Half Full? Buffering Central Arizona Farmers from Signals of Environmental Change - Julia C. Bausch (CGS), John P. Conners, and Hallie Eakin
• Distributed Hydrologic Modeling of Semiarid Basins in Arizona: A Platform for Climate Change Assessments - Gretchen A. Hawkins (CGS) and Enrique R. Vivoni
• A Decision Making Game to Guide Water Sustainability Related to Policy Outcomes - Geetali Dudhbhate (CGS), Erik Johnston, Ajay Vinze, Rashmi Krishnamurthy, Dweepika Desai, and Qian Hu
• Interactive Computer Simulations for Public Administration Education - Rashmi Krishnamurthy, Qian Hu, and Erik Johnston

Internship for Science-Practice Integration

The Decision Center for a Desert City undergraduate internship program bridges the world of academia to the world of water management by placing students with agencies to carry out use-inspired research projects.

Through the program, students learn about the concepts and practical aspects of boundary research. The one-semester internship program is available to undergraduate students in their senior year.

The DCDC internship program integrates science and practice by expecting the students:

• to work 10 hours per week on a project that is relevant to their internship mentor and agency, learning about professional practice
• to develop an original research project within the internship , linking science and practice
• to team-up with a faculty mentor, receiving academic advice and ensuring the academic rigor of their research project
• to participate in a weekly 3-credit hour class to discuss the research-based internship, building skills in the areas of communication, meeting facilitation, and presentation delivery

Posters

State-level ADWR (general governance approaches)

How Do We Catalyze Adaptive and Innovative Practices in Public Regulatory Agencies?

• McKenzie Ragan, Internship Fellow, School of Sustainability
• Michael J. Lacey, Internship Provider, Arizona Department of Water Resources
• Dave D. White, Faculty Mentor, Decision Center for a Desert City

Inter-city comparison: Planning approach 1: scenario construction as adaptive planning approach

How Scenario Planning Will Benefit Scottsdale Water Resources’ Master Planning Process

• Ariel Pepper, Internship Fellow, School of Sustainability
• Beth Miller, Internship Provider, City of Scottsdale
• Ray Quay, Faculty Mentor, Decision Center for a Desert City

Inter-City level: Planning approach 2: collaborative management: problem perception and potential solution-options

Prevalent Perceptions of Water Use in Arizona

• Colin Russell, Internship Fellow, School of Sustainability
• Mark Holmes, Internship Provider, City of Mesa
• Erik Johnston, Faculty Mentor, School of Public Affairs

What Factors Motivated the Creation of the Colorado and Kansas Water Congresses?

• Kena Fedorschak, Internship Fellow, School of Sustainability
• Mark Holmes, Internship Provider, City of Mesa
• Erik Johnston, Faculty Mentor, School of Public Affairs

Engaging businesses as multiplier of solutions

The Relationship between Restaurants and Sustainability: Marketing the Tempe FOG Program

• Michael Nicastro, Internship Fellow, School of Sustainability
• David McNeil, Internship Provider, City of Tempe
• George Basile, Faculty Mentor, School of Sustainability

Smartscape: Using Education as a Tool for Reducing Water in Desert Landscapes

• Michael Alan Babcock, Internship Fellow, School of Sustainability
• Summer Waters and Haley Paul, Internship Provider, University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
• Kelli Larson, Faculty Mentor, School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning and the School of Sustainability

Sustainability is a balance of environmental, social and economic concerns. ASU staff and faculty are advancing sustainability by demonstrating exemplary practices, leading by example, and sharing solutions to catalyze change.

This award recognizes ASU teams that have demonstrated excellence in fostering the successful development, implementation, and promotion of sustainability principles, solutions, programs, and services in the teaching, learning, research and business missions of the University.

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A Thought Leader Series Piece

By Richard Kidd

Note: ASU was selected by the Army National Guard to partner in the development and delivery of an online Graduate Certificate in Sustainability Leadership designed exclusively for Soldiers and Army-related civilians. Classes are offered through the School of Sustainability.

Imagine the U.S. Army called to war with no fuel, no supplies, and no training.

You can’t. To safeguard against such a scenario, the Army embraces sustainability as a foundation of its global mission, operations, and strategic management. As a matter of preparedness, sustainability is integrated across the Army’s four lines of operation – material, military training, personnel, and services and infrastructure.

This is not a fad, but serious business. Army leaders have been working since 2000 to embed sustainability into the Army’s culture. Through collaborations with academia, federal agencies, and other organizations, and by emphasizing the key role sustainability plays in enabling operations at home and overseas, the Army has shifted its behavior. A strong culture of sustainability now ensures that the Army of tomorrow has the same access to energy, water, land, and other natural resources as it does today.

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Author: Jesus R. Gastelum, Central Arizona Project

ABSTRACT An analysis of Arizona’s water resources system has been implemented. This study uses a qualitative system analysis approach to evaluate the most important components of the system: water supply, water demand, laws and regulations, stakeholders, decision makers, etc. Moreover, the investigation centres on some key components of the water resources system such as water conservation in active management areas (AMA), rural Arizona, population growth, and water rights transfers. This study provides insights on these important components, identifies factors that can be enhanced and offers suggestions for improving them. The overall goal of this analysis is to contribute ideas that will help to establish a more efficient and holistic programme to secure sustainable development of water resources.

For the full article.

Urban Heat Island Research in Phoenix, Arizona: Theoretical Contributions and Policy Applications

Authors: Winston T. L. Chow, Dean Brennan, and Anthony J. Brazel

Department of Engineering, Arizona State University, Mesa, Arizona

School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona

Abstract

Over the past 60 years, metropolitan Phoenix, Arizona, has been among the fastest-growing urban areas in the United States, and this rapid urbanization has resulted in an urban heat island (UHI) of substantial size and intensity. During this time, an uncommon amount of UHI-specific research, relative to other cities in North America, occurred within its boundaries. This review investigates the possible reasons and motivations underpinning the large body of work, as well as summarizing specific themes, approaches, and theoretical contributions arising from such study. It is argued that several factors intrinsic to Phoenix were responsible for the prodigious output: strong applied urban climate research partnerships between several agencies (such as the academy, the National Weather Service, private energy firms, and municipal governments); a high-quality, long-standing network of urban meteorological stations allowing for relatively fine spatial resolution of near-surface temperature data; and a high level of public and media interest in the UHI. Three major research themes can be discerned: 1) theoretical contributions from documenting, modeling, and analyzing the physical characteristics of the UHI; 2) interdisciplinary investigation into its biophysical and social consequences; and 3) assessment and evaluation of several UHI mitigation techniques. Also examined herein is the successful implementation of sustainable urban climate policies within the metropolitan area. The authors note the importance of understanding and applying local research results during the policy formation process.

Chow, Winston T. L., Dean Brennan, Anthony J. Brazel, 2012: Urban Heat Island Research in Phoenix, Arizona: Theoretical Contributions and Policy Applications. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 93, 517–530.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-11-00011.1