Colorado Water Center

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Colorado Water Center

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Research, education, & engagement to address today’s most pressing water issues in Colorado & beyond.

CoWC is one of 54 Water Resources Research Institutes created by the Water Resources Act of 1964, which collectively form the National Institutes for Water Resources. At Colorado State University, CoWC brings together a network of over 200 faculty members from various departments across campus and seeks to engage students and faculty in interdisciplinary research and to promote current water-related research taking place at CSU. A main focus area of CoWC is to inform interested faculty, students, and community members of water-related opportunities on the CSU campus and throughout the state of Colorado. We announce events, jobs and internships, research funding, and volunteer opportunities on our website and in our e-newsletter, The Current; produce the Colorado Water newsletter, host conferences, workshops, and seminars to highlight innovative water research and activities of CSU faculty and students; provide research grants and fellowship opportunities; and offer the Sustainable Water Interdisciplinary Minor (SWIM) for all undergraduates. Stay up to date with all things water in Colorado by following us on Instagram and Twitter

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10/07/2026

Next week's welcomes special guest Letisha Yazzie to present at the Colorado River-themed Interdisciplinary Water Resources Seminar lecture on Monday, October 12, 2026.

As Water Resources Director for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe (UMUT), Letisha manages the tribe's water resources across Colorado, Utah, and New Mexico along with the tribe's six ranches. Letisha started the UMUT Water Resources Department in May of 2023. Her previous experience includes eight years at the New Mexico State Engineer's Office administering and permitting water rights in the San Juan River Basin. Letisha holds a BA in chemistry from Arizona State University and an MBA from New Mexico Highlands University.

Join us to engage in the West's most urgent water challenge. All interested faculty, non-credit students, and off-campus guests are welcome to attend in-person in Natural Resources Building Room 109, or via Zoom - virtual registration is available via the GRAD 592 webpage: https://watercenter.colostate.edu/take-a-class/interdisciplinary-water-resources-seminar/

10/05/2026

On November 12, the 2026 Norm Evans Lecture Series welcomes keynote speaker Ernest House, Jr., senior policy director and director for the Center for Tribal and Indigenous Engagement at the Keystone Policy Center, as well as co-director of the Water & Tribes Initiative.

The keynote lecture will be followed by two, short documentary film screenings: 'Rooted: A Story of Rematriation' and 'River as Teacher.' The screenings will be held in partnership with the Navajo Nation, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, the Montezuma Land Conservancy, Trees, Water and People, the National Park Service, USGS, and Western University.

Both films will be screened simultaneously at Colorado State University in Fort Collins and at Western University in Gunnison, and will feature post-screening Q&A panel discussions to foster a deeper connection between the audience and the films’ topics.

Thursday, November 12, 2026
4:30 p.m. at the LSC Theater, CSU Fort Collins

More info and RSVP:https://watercenter.colostate.edu/events/norm-evans-lecture-series/

10/01/2026

Meet the 2026 recipients of the Colorado Water Center Faculty Fellows program, established to formally recognize CSU faculty whose research and educational contributions advance the university's interdisciplinary scholarship in water-related fields.

"CSU is home to an extraordinary community of water scholars whose research, teaching and engagement are helping to address some of the most pressing water challenges of our time," said CoWC Director Karen Schlatter. "The Colorado Water Center Faculty Fellows program creates a way to both recognize the meaningful impact of CSU's water expertise and amplify the Colorado Water Center's role as a hub of interdisciplinary collaboration."

The Early Career CoWC Fellowship was awarded to Antônio Alves Meira Neto, an assistant professor of hydrological sciences and engineering in the CSU Civil and Environmental Engineering. His research focuses on how water moves through landscapes of varying scales with an emphasis on ecohydrology. At CSU he teaches basic hydrology and leads an interdisciplinary research group working to connect hydrologic theory to applied water challenges.

Dan McGrath, an associate professor in the Department of Geosciences, was awarded the Distinguished CoWC Faculty Fellowship. His research focuses on glacier dynamics, hazards, and snow hydrology by combining fieldwork with remote sensing. At CSU he co-founded and co-organizes the annual Colorado Glaciology Workshop, has mentored 11 graduate students, and frequently shares his research in national outlets.

Learn more about the faculty fellows on SOURCE: https://source.colostate.edu/two-csu-faculty-awarded-first-colorado-water-center-faculty-fellowships/

09/30/2026

Next week's welcomes two special guests: Jennifer Pitt and Taylor Hawes will present at the next Colorado River-themed Interdisciplinary Water Resources Seminar lecture on Monday, October 5, 2026.

As the National Audubon Society's Colorado River Program Director, Jennifer Pitt collaborates with a team on a range of issues that address sustainability and resilience in the Colorado River Basin, including state-based groundwater and federal rulemaking. With a career spanning 25 years, Jennifer also serves as U.S. co-chair of the Minute 323 Environmental Work Group, working to implement habitat restoration in Mexico's Colorado River Delta.

Taylor Hawes serves as Special Policy Advisor to the Nature Conservancy's Colorado River Program, focused on basin-wide policy and long-term funding issues. She has worked on Colorado River issues for almost 30 years, serving as TNC's Colorado River Program Director from 2008-2025. She currently serves on the Colorado Water Conservation Board and has testified to both Senate and House Congressional Committees about the river and solutions.

Join us to engage in the West's most urgent water challenge. All interested faculty, non-credit students, and off-campus guests are welcome to attend in-person in Natural Resources Building Room 109, or via Zoom - virtual registration is available via the GRAD 592 webpage: https://watercenter.colostate.edu/take-a-class/interdisciplinary-water-resources-seminar/

09/25/2026

The 2026-2027 Water Literate Leaders cohort is here!

Hosted in partnership with NoCo Foundation, the program brings Northern Colorado community leaders together to learn about and learn to address important water conservation and solutions for the region. The new cohort, which held its first meeting on September 9, includes representatives from organizations like:

💧 City of Fort Collins
💧 Ducks Unlimited
💧 Ball Corporation
💧 City of Loveland
💧 Palmer Land Conservancy
💧 CSU Ag Water Quality
💧 Coalition for the Poudre River Watershed - CPRW

Learn more about this year's WLL cohort and more of the program's offerings at this link: https://watercenter.colostate.edu/water-education-and-workforce-development/water-literate-leaders-of-northern-colorado/

09/23/2026

continues Monday, September 28! Join us and special guest Amy Ostdiek for the next Colorado River-themed Interdisciplinary Water Resources Seminar lecture.

As Chief of the Interstate, Federal, and Water Information Section at the Colorado Water Conservation Board, Amy Ostdiek works to protect Colorado's interest in interstate water compacts by supporting coordination with federal, state, and Tribal Nation governments. Amy is a member of the State's Colorado River negotiation team and is Colorado's representative on the Platte River Recovery Implementation Program.

Her lecture Monday will discuss key elements of the Law of the Colorado River, including the 1922 Colorado River Compact and its enduring importance. She will also discuss implementation of more recent agreements, including the 2007 Interim Guidelines and 2019 Drought Contingency Pans, and Colorado's positions throughout negotiations on post-2026 operations of Powell and Mead.

All interested faculty, non-credit students, and off-campus guests are welcome to attend in-person in Natural Resources Building Room 109, or via Zoom - virtual registration is available via the GRAD 592 webpage: https://watercenter.colostate.edu/take-a-class/interdisciplinary-water-resources-seminar/

09/17/2026

continues Monday, September 21! Join us and special guest Brad Udall for the next Colorado River-themed Interdisciplinary Water Resources Seminar lecture.

As the Senior Water and Climate Research Scientist/Scholar at the Colorado Water Center, Brad brings decades of experience in climate change, hydrology, and related policy issues of the American West. A contributing author to both the 4th National Climate Assessment and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment report, he's provided congressional testimony, input to several National Academy of Science panels, and has given hundreds of talks on climate change impacts to water resources, water law, and water policy. Brad was formerly the Director of the Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy and Environment at the University of Colorado Law School and Director of the University of Colorado - NOAA Western Water Assessment.

His lecture next Monday will draw on his decades of research on Western water and climate to explain the mechanisms behind “aridification,” its implications for the 40 million people and $1.4 trillion annual economy that depend on the river, and the policy challenges facing water managers as they renegotiate operating rules for a shrinking resource. Join us to engage in the West's most urgent water challenge.

All interested faculty, non-credit students, and off-campus guests are welcome to attend in-person in Natural Resources Building Room 109, or via Zoom - virtual registration is available via the GRAD 592 webpage: https://watercenter.colostate.edu/take-a-class/interdisciplinary-water-resources-seminar/

09/15/2026

💧A Project WET Facilitator Training is fast approaching!💧

Join a growing network of Colorado Project WET facilitators across the state and help advance Colorado K-12 water education. This FREE facilitator training for folks in the Colorado River Basin will be hosted in Grand Junction at the EUREKA! McConnell Science Museum on Thursday, October 22, 2026. After becoming a Colorado Project WET facilitator, lead workshops in your community to benefit your organization, educators and students in becoming more water literate.

📅: Thursday, October 22nd, 2026, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
📍: EUREKA! McConnell Science Museum
1400 N 7 Street, Grand Junction, CO

Register and find more information on the Colorado Project WET page: https://watercenter.colostate.edu/water-education-and-workforce-development/colorado-project-wet/

09/10/2026

continues next Monday! Join us for the next Colorado River-themed Interdisciplinary Water Resources Seminar lecture from 4-5:00 p.m. featuring CoWC Senior Water Policy Scholar Jennifer Gimbel.

Jennifer's presentation will dive into the complex law and policy of past and future Colorado River management. As she recently told Bloomberg News, much as changed since the Compact's signing in 1922.

"We have no safety net now," Gimbel said. "When all those other agreements were signed, there was still decent amounts of water in the reservoir." Watch the full segment on Bloomberg News here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjrW88M58jA

Then join us on Monday to engage with Jennifer in the West's most urgent water challenge. All interested faculty, non-credit students, and off-campus guests are welcome to attend in-person in Natural Resources Building Room 109, or via Zoom: https://watercenter.colostate.edu/take-a-class/interdisciplinary-water-resources-seminar/

09/02/2026

continues Monday, September 14! Join us for the next Colorado River-themed Interdisciplinary Water Resources Seminar lecture from 4-5:00 p.m. featuring CoWC Senior Water Policy Scholar Jennifer Gimbel.

Jennifer's presentation will dive into the complex maze of federal and state laws, regulations, criteria, policies, and international treaty obligations that have dictated past Colorado River management and will examine future drivers of river management. Gimbel currently teaches Colorado State University graduate and undergraduate students interested in water policy issues and develops published articles on the Colorado River and water issues facing Colorado.

She previously served as the principal deputy assistant secretary for water and science in the Department of the Interior and as deputy commissioner for external and intergovernmental affairs for the Bureau of Reclamation. From 2008 to 2013, Gimbel served as director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board and as the governor’s representative on Colorado River issues.

Join us to engage in the West's most urgent water challenge. All interested faculty, non-credit students, and off-campus guests are welcome to attend in-person in Natural Resources Building Room 109, or via Zoom - virtual registration is available via the GRAD 592 webpage: https://watercenter.colostate.edu/take-a-class/interdisciplinary-water-resources-seminar/

Address

Fort Collins, CO

Telephone

(970) 491-2695

Website

http://linktr.ee/ColoradoWaterCenter

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