Projects

The University of California, Riverside (UCR) has established the Environmental Research Institute (ERI) to act as an umbrella organization to integrate UCR's interdisciplinary research centers and educational programs related to the significant challenges in managing air, water, energy, biodiversity, natural resources and sustainability. Initially, this effort will include the College of Engineering-Center for Research and Technology, the Air Pollution Research Center, the Center for Conservation Biology, the Center for Sustainable Suburban Development and a broad based effort in water resource management. Other organizations and faculty are expected to become part of the Institute as it develops.

The heart of this strategy is to implement a new comprehensive vision to meet the 21st century challenges in the environment. The initial research program will focus on Southern California and the Inland Empire (specifically, the Coachella Valley) although it is expected that these efforts will quickly be expanded to investigate other regions of the world, particularly Asia, as the funding base expands.

The key motivation for establishing the Environmental Research Institute is the belief that research and education can continue to positively influence planning and development processes. If done so successfully, the project will support and enhance the University's overall mission of providing research, service and education.

Thus, the initial objectives of ERI are:

1. To define and develop methodologies and technologies that will improve air quality, water resources, environmental integrity, and renewable energies, as well as preserve biodiversity in California and the rest of the world.
2. To develop improved mechanisms for evaluating environmental strategies, policy, and proposed technologies.
3. To create unique educational opportunities for our students, corporate leaders, policymakers, and K-12 educators.
4. To understand the roles of both locally and globally driven change to the local and global environment.
5. To contribute to California and the world's quality of life and global economy.

The unique aspect of this concept lies in the integration of multiple disciplines, which will create new approaches to solving persistent problems and reconciling competing viewpoints. It will create a true systems approach to studying and solving environmental and energy problems. UCR researchers from multiple disciplines will work together to set forth hypotheses and research strategies, conduct experiments, and analyze results. Their conclusions will be used to refine and further develop analytical models of environmental and social behavior, greatly enhancing the nascent concept of interdisciplinary modeling. Such an approach will enable realistic evaluations of trade-offs among environmental media, as well as assessments of how the public will respond to environmental regulatory strategies. 

ERI's participating Research Centers 

Center for Environmental Research and Technology

Center for Conservation Biology

Edward J. Blakely
Center for Sustainable Urban Development

Air Pollution Research Center

Integrated Modeling Center

Water Resource and Management Center