Annual Reports

The Western Water Assessment (WWA) is a university-based applied research program that addresses societal vulnerabilities to climate variability and climate change, particularly those related to water resources. While we are based in Boulder, Colorado, we work across the Intermountain West—Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. We conduct innovative research in partnership with communities and decision makers in the region, helping them make the best use of science in planning and managing for climate impacts.

Our vision is to build regional resilience to compound hazards, with a particular focus on underserved Indigenous and small rural communities and utilities. Our research projects fit within two themes: resilient water systems and resilient communities; we are therefore identifying needs and opportunities and integrating resilience tracking metrics to evaluate our success. Through this thoughtful approach to projects, we are advancing resilience science from theory to practice. Our work draws on our 20-year history of climate adaptation research and activities in the region, and the deep interdisciplinary social and natural science expertise on our team.