Heat, water and farming
Arizona’s environment affects all of us—whether homes and people in our communities stay safe in the heat, whether water flows from the tap and whether the farms that grow our food can survive and thrive.
Through research and outreach, ASU is working to solve these problems alongside the communities that face them every day.
Ed Curry is reducing water use on his 3,000-acre southern Arizona farm with the help of ASU scientists and a soil health technology that uses live, native microalgae.
Read Ed’s story
Responding to extreme heat
Extreme heat puts lives at risk across Arizona, especially in communities without enough shade, cooling or safe housing. ASU can't change the weather — but we are working with scientists, public leaders and communities to respond.
Heat safety advocacy
ASU students who lived in mobile-home parks helped survey their neighbors. The research led to a law guaranteeing mobile-home owners' right to install cooling measures.
Learn about advocacy for mobile home owners
Heat screening and treatment
ASU nursing students are working in the heart of metro Phoenix to screen and treat people suffering from extreme heat.
Learn how our students are helping
Cooler cities
ASU researchers are using ANDI — a life-size model that mimics how the human body heats up and cools down — alongside MaRTy, a mobile sensor system that measures how heat moves through streets, shade and buildings. The insights from ANDI and MARTy help cities in Arizona to make better choices for keeping people safe from extreme heat.
Learn more about ANDI and MARTy
Protecting Arizona’s water supply
Water is the issue that connects every corner of Arizona, from faucets in Phoenix to farms along the Colorado River. ASU is working around the state to make sure water supplies are accessible, clean and sustainable.
Household water access
In Yuma County, ASU students are working door-to-door to help households access clean, accessible water sources.
Read about how we’re helping in Yuma
Rural water scarcity
ASU works with rural Arizona farming communities to address water scarcity at the source — helping growers test wells, understand groundwater limits and implement practical conservation strategies so crops can survive drought conditions and agricultural livelihoods remain viable.
Read the story
Arizona’s farming future
Farming is an important part of Arizona’s history — and it’s even more important to its future. Arizona’s farmers are some of the most resourceful people in the state, and ASU works directly with them to keep crops growing and put food on the table.
Making farms work
Raghu Nandivada, an ASU-trained engineer inspired by his family’s farming roots, built AI-powered robots that take on the hardest fieldwork — helping Arizona farmers stay afloat as labor shortages and costs rise.
Learn more about Raghu’s farming robots
Healthy crops
In Yuma, ASU is joining forces with the University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University to research how to grow more resilient crops and improve food safety. The work is set to improve agricultural productivity in Yuma and across the state.
Learn more about agricultural innovation in Yuma
