On June 2, Arizona State University-affiliate Zócalo Public Square hosted a sustainability forum titled "Should Phoenix Exist?" The forum examined how Phoenix came to be a thriving metropolis despite its desert location, the consequences of its rapid growth and what citizens should do to ensure its continued success.

Among the forum's panelists were Sarah Porter, director of ASU's Kyl Center for Water Policy at the Morrison Institute, and Andrew Needham, a New York University historian and author of “Power Lines: Phoenix and the Making of the Modern Southwest." According to Needham, Phoenix’s urban transformation came largely without an understanding by most people of the distances crucial resources must travel to get to a city in the middle of the desert.

All panelists agreed that the key to sustaining the Valley, in addition to strong and innovative leadership, is an informed population.