Environmental Risks and Built Environment in the Borderland of the Southwest
This scoping project explores opportunities for collaboration in the Arizona-Sonora portion of the U.S.-Mexico border region that emphasize environmental risks and air quality, small scale computing and technology, and citizen science monitoring of environmental phenomena. In fall 2018, Ben McMahan helped convene an environmental workshop to identify emergent areas of interest. This workshop led to a focus on solar heaters and their relevance to climate and air quality in the Nogales region. Another workshop is scheduled for the fall of 2019.
There are numerous avenues for collaborative research projects and outreach in the borderlands region, and this project provides a mechanism to develop new research and engagement, as well as to connect CLIMAS expertise to existing project work. Topics emphasize climate and health (environmental risks and air quality), small scale computing, technology, and citizen science monitoring of environmental phenomena, emergent CLIMAS specific outreach and network development, and small-scale solar feasibility.