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Freshwater

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The need for freshwater is growing along with a rising global population.

Threats to that critical resource are rising too, as climate change amplifies the risks of catastrophic droughts and floods to dangerous extremes. 

Stanford researchers are addressing these and other freshwater threats in some of the most water-challenged regions of the world. In both developed and developing nations, Woods-affiliated scholars are looking for ways to meet the growing demand for freshwater through innovative, practical solutions ranging from recyling wastewater to improving water use efficiency and urban stormwater management to reducing the impact of agriculture and other land uses on water systems.

Programs like the Global Freshwater Initiative, Water, Health and Development and Water in the West provide critical data and analysis about sustainable freshwater resources while developing strategies to ensure the long-term viability of water supplies from both a scientific and governance perspective. 

Through these and other interdisciplinary initiatives across campus, Stanford researchers are working to improve water security for people in the American West and around the world.