A summer program co-facilitated by the University of Arizona is providing undergraduate and graduate students in the natural sciences the opportunity to conduct international water research. The program, which lasts from March 23 to May 1, 2027, includes virtual research, cultural orientation, and professional communication training. In addition, students will have the opportunity to participate in a five-week collaborative field project with water researchers in South Africa from June 4 to July 10.

When U of A football kicks off against Texas Christian University on November 6, the game will culminate a week of events celebrating the Sonoran Desert as inspiration for excellence university wide. Research by a diverse group of experts will highlight our desert’s unique contribution to who we are as a community.

Members of the WRRC Transboundary Aquifer Assessment Program (TAAP) team recently participated in two events highlighting cross-border collaboration and research on shared water challenges along the US–Mexico border. On October 20–21, WRRC Director Sharon B. Megdal and Associate in Extension Elia Tapia attended Bridges Over Water between Mexico and the United States: Cross-Border Solutions in Monterrey, Mexico. Convened by the Rosenberg International Forum on Water Policy and the Permanent Forum of Binational Waters, along with several institutional partners, the event brought together researchers, decision-makers, and stakeholders from both countries to exchange perspectives on shared water challenges and opportunities for cooperation.

Native peoples have been self-governing on the American continent for thousands of years, and their sovereignty as nations predates the US Constitution. In an October 27 WRRC webinar, Jason Robison of the Wyoming College of Law and Jay Weiner of Rosette, LLP, a majority Indian-owned national law firm, outlined the past and present of Tribal sovereignty and how it is being practiced in the Colorado River Basin today.

A study of drought impacts on water storage in the Colorado River Basin, published in the October issue of Water Resources Research, documents sustained groundwater depletion over the past two decades. The authors, from Virginia Tech and Indiana University, point to an acceleration of storage losses after 2019, particularly with the 2020–2022 drought.

At the San Xavier Cooperative Farm, members of the Tohono O’odham Nation grow traditional foods, work to rematriate Indigenous seeds, and follow the Tohono O’odham Himdag, or Way of Life. Amy Juan, a member of the Nation and the farm’s Administration Manager, spoke about her environmental and cultural work at a Native Voices in Stem (NVIS) webinar on October 14. 

On October 16, Arizona signed on to a lawsuit filed by Nevada over federal Colorado River water cuts to the Lower Basin States: Arizona, Nevada, and California. The suit challenges the Department of the Interior’s plan to deal with water shortages on the river.

Tucsonans gathered at The Loft Cinema to watch the 2026 documentary, The River, on the evening of October 14. The screening, which was hosted by the WRRC, offered an intimate look at the communities that rely on the Colorado River. The documentary explores the unique relationships people have with the river, the diverse ways they imagine the river’s role in their lives, and their hopes for its future in the midst of the current ecological crisis.

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.