University of Arizona professor Jennifer McIntosh was named a Union Fellow for her contributions to hydrology by the American Geophysical Union (AGU) late last month. The Union Fellowship is among the AGU’s highest honors and is awarded annually to a cohort of exceptional geophysical scholars whose work has had a sustained impact on the field.

Early voting opened on October 7, and over 160,000 Arizonans have already cast their ballots. For many Arizonans, securing the state’s water future is a high priority. According to polling from the Center for the Future of Arizona (CFA), a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization, the majority of likely Arizona voters in both parties support dedicating more state funding to water, investing in desalination and wastewater recycling strategies, and strengthening groundwater protections in the state’s rural areas.

The WRRC is pleased to announce the publication of its FY 2026 Annual Report. The report highlights how, through applied research, outreach, and engagement, the WRRC continues to contribute to water resource planning, assessment, and capacity building, as well as to expand awareness and understanding of water resource issues. As Arizona and the region face ongoing water challenges, the WRRC serves as a trusted source for reliable information.

University ranking organizations place the U of A high on scales of research quality and educational performance. In the 2027 ShanghaiRanking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects (GRAS), the U of A ranked highly in several academic subjects, including water resources, which ranked #6 among public and US universities and #17 globally.

In the Southwest, famous for its dry climate, riparian areas—ecosystems supported by rivers and streams—occupy only a small fraction of the landscape but serve as lifelines, supporting most of the region’s biodiversity.

A study by researchers at Skidmore College and the University of Arizona, published in August 2026 in the Journal of Health Psychology, revealed long-lasting mental health harms from chronic environmental contamination across generations in affected communities and impacts on their collective identity.

The University of Arizona is among only 14 institutions to receive the Carnegie Elective Classification for Sustainability in 2026, the inaugural year of the sustainability classification.

The WRRC 2027 Annual Conference is in development, with a working title of Water Conservation and Innovation for a Resilient Arizona. Mark your calendars — the event will be held April 26–27 at the University of Arizona Student Union in Tucson, Arizona. The program will explore conservation in the face of Colorado River shortages and declining groundwater levels. We will highlight innovative case studies, policies, planning processes, demand management, technological approaches, and other strategies across all sectors for adapting to Arizona’s evolving water realities. In addition to in-person attendance, a non-interactive free Zoom livestream will be available.

Wells draw water from aquifers, which are underground layers of rock and sediment, saturated with water. The line between the ground’s unsaturated and saturated zones is called the water table. The water table can rise and fall naturally over time due to fluctuations in weather and climate, but human activity, including pumping water from wells, can also influence the water level.

On September 28, WRRC Director Sharon B. Megdal and Associate in Extension Elia Tapia presented on shared aquifers in the Arizona–Sonora border region as part of the University of Arizona Department of Environmental Science Fall 2026 Colloquium Series.