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December 15, 2017 / Volume 5, Issue 33
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WRRC 2018 Conference
Agenda is Now Online!
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The agenda for the 2018 WRRC Annual Conference, The Business of Water, has been posted.
The conference, to be held on March 28, 2018 at the UA Student Union, will feature a diversity of keynotes and panel presentations by water business experts from throughout the Southwest. The day will address a range of topics, from water transactions to the development and funding of public-private partnerships, to the business of water and the environment, to water and economic opportunity, and so much more!
Please plan on attending this exciting event on March 28, 2018. And watch the Weekly Wave for registration opening in January!
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Looking Ahead to Spring 2018 Brown Bags Tentative Schedule
- January 17 - George Frisvold, Professor, Specialist AREC
- January 23 - Cynthia Wallace, USGS Research Geographer
- February 6 - Maria Dadgar, Executive Director of ITCA
- February 12 - Marty Ralph, Director, Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes, University of California San Diego
- February 21 - Jacob Petersen-Perlman, Research Analyst WRRC, Sharon B. Megdal, Director WRRC, and James Callegary, Hydrologist, USGS
- February 22 - John Fleck, Author and Water Resources Program Director, University of New Mexico
- March 13 - Ben Wilder, Director, Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill
- April 12 - Felicia Marcus, Chair, CA State Water Resources Control Board
- April 17 - Chris Castro, Associate Professor, Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences
Check out all of our upcoming events and videos of previous events on our
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 WRRC Hosts USGS National Leadership Meeting
On December 5-7 the WRRC hosted personnel from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Office of Planning and Programming for a series of meetings. during which WRRC Director Sharon Megdal was given the opportunity to showcase the WRRC's mission and programs. The meeting also included an overview of the Transboundary Aquifer Assessment Program (TAAP). Dr. Sam Fernald, Director of the New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute, led a discussion of collaborative efforts of the members of the National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR). The 54 NIWR institutes and university research projects are funded by the USGS through Annual Base Grants, National Competitive Grants, and Coordination Grants. In addition, students are supported through the NIWR-USGS Student Internship Program. The group also attended a brownbag lecture on December 6th given by Meghan Smart of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality.
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The WRRC Welcomes Leslie Bonilla
We are excited to announce that Leslie Bonilla has accepted the position of Accountant Associate and has started working December 6. Leslie has been with the UA Financial Services Office for 7 years. Leslie will work at the WRRC under the direction of Christie Mills, SWES Business Manager, Sr. Leslie's position, created as part of a shared business center model, will help offset the departure of our dedicated business manage, LaVonne Walton, who is retiring. Her duties will include managing financial accounts for the WRRC, including APW.
Leslie is originally from the Pinetop/Lakeside area in the White Mountains. She is part owner of a landscaping company in Pinetop. Leslie has two children, one who will graduate from the UA in May, and five dogs. Although she grew up in the mountains, she is thrilled to be in Tucson and working at the WRRC.
Welcome, Leslie!
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Gearing Up for Spring Underwater Robotics Competition
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Sunee Stevens gushes about the Underwater ROV Club at Imagine Prep in Surprise, "My daughter rates it a 10/10!!! She loves it!" Students are already preparing for the spring Aircraft, Earthquakes and Energy, 2018 MATE ROV Competition that will take place at the University of Arizona on April 14th. This competition will highlight the role that ROVs play in supporting underwater archaeology, seismology, and renewable energy activities. Heather Polk, a middle school science teacher at Imagine Prep, borrowed APW's underwater robot kits this November and used them to introduce ROVs to her students. "Using the kits helped the students comprehend the final product, while allowing the flexibility of individual designs. We had a great time driving them around our pool!" Inspired by this experience, the students are building frame prototypes to scale, soldering circuit boards, and assembling motors. And in the process, they are building life skills and interest in STEM careers - something we can already see!
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Zip Code Questionnaire Prize Winner
Congratulations to
Tim Wheeler, the winner of a WRRC water map poster. Thank you to Tim and all of the others who participated in our online questionnaire. Your responses will help us assess our reach in the state of Arizona and beyond. We will use this information to improve upon our role as a water information hub!
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Best of Luck to the WRRC Graduating Students!
In December, the WRRC will say 'so long' to two of our long-time student employees. Juli Simons successfully defended her Master's Project, 'Self-Sterilizing Harvesting Tools and Irrigation Pipelines' in early December. Juli, who has been working in the lab of WRRC Associate Director Jean McLain since January 2016, also earned her Bachelor's Degree in the UA Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science. Juli will be spending several weeks touring the Northwestern U.S. before relocating to her native Massachusetts to begin a career in environmental science.
December also marks the graduation of WRRC Student IT Technician Brendan Murphy. Brendan, who is graduating with a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, has been maintaining the WRRC computer servers and laptops, printers, and scanners in good working order since December 2015. Brendan will be working in the computer industry for the next several months before returning to Graduate School in Fall 2018.
We will miss seeing Juli and Brendan but wish them both the very best in the future.
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WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH CENTER
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