Water in the American West sits at the interface of complex natural forces and political interests. Legal, economic, cultural, and ecological systems all converge around water. StudyTank, the research arm of the Wright-Ingraham Institute, invited us to consider: What is Drought?

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The inquiry that followed focused on key interfaces in the Colorado River Basin: between drought and water rights, and between drought and climate change. The Colorado River Basin includes seven states and approximately 40 million people.

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As climate change, drought, and aridification impact the basin and stakeholders, existing systems will also be transformed.

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To help imagine the future of water in the Colorado River Basin, we built a visualization tool that represents the layered complexity of the watershed. Utilizing data for historical stream flow, eco-regions, population distribution, tribal lands, and other legal frameworks, it explores the complexity and relationships of existing conditions, and helps imagines a more sustainable interface between civilization and nature in the American West.

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The Drought Interfaces Intro page can be accessed here .

The Drought Interfaces can be accessed here .