Colorado State University (CSU) Water Center

 

Water Information for New CSU Graduate Students

 

There are 25 departments at Colorado State University that house over 100 faculty who apply their disciplines to water issues and problems.  Beyond the departmental boundaries there exist a number of interdisciplinary water activities in which graduate students studying water-related topics may want to participate.  These activities greatly enrich the educational experience of students who choose to participate. 

 

            The purpose of this information sheet is to inform newly admitted graduate students of these interdisciplinary water-related information sources and activities.  

 

1.                  Home Pages for CSU Water Related Information

 

If you have not already accessed the ‘water’ home pages at CSU, we encourage you to check out the following spots on the internet. 

 

CWRRI – http://cwrri.colostate.edu

Colorado Water Knowledge – http://waterknowledge.colostate.edu

                        Water Center – http://watercenter.colostate.edu

                        Aquatic Ecology – http://www.cnr.colostate.edu/FWB/aquatic/index.htm , go to Aquatic Ecology

 

 

The Colorado Water Resources Research Institute (CWRRI) maintains a listing of ‘water’ faculty located on the CSU campus along with a listing of the courses they teach.  The CWRRI newsletter is also posted on this site along with key links to other water related homepages.  This is an excellent source of the larger picture of water expertise at CSU and in Colorado.  The Colorado Water Knowledge homepage is devoted to summarizing basic water facts that pertain to Colorado.  The CSU Water Center homepage will provide information on water-related majors at CSU, state and federal water-related research centers located in Fort Collins, CSU water-related institutes and centers, water-related job opportunities, and a summary of CSU’s rich water history.  The Aquatic Ecology at CSU homepage provides insight into programs that address the interface of biology and hydrology, an increasingly important subject in water management in the West.

 

2.                  AWRA Student Chapter – Colorado State University hosts a student chapter of the American Water Resources Association, a national professional organization that supports interdisciplinary approaches to improving water management.  The Organization also has a Colorado Section in which CSU students participate.  For more information about the CSU AWRA Student Chapter, contact Professor John Stednick, Faculty Advisory, Department of Earth Resources, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO [Phone: 970/491-7248; E-mail: jds@cnr.colostate.edu]

 

3.                  Student Water Symposium – Each fall semester, students from many departments, interested in improving their professional speaking, organizing and networking skills, plan and implement the CSU Student Water Symposium.  This entirely student run Symposium provides students with an excellent opportunity to gain experience in organizing professional meetings and presenting the results of their research before fellow students and faculty.  The students also invite well-recognized water writers and scientists from around the U.S. to participate.  For example, in the 1999 Symposium, Marc Reisner, author of Cadillac Desert, was the keynote speaker at the Student Water Symposium.  For more information about the Student Water Symposium, use the symposium’s e-mail address: watersym@colostate.edu and/or access the symposium’s home page: http://watersym.colostate.edu/

 

4.                  Hydrology Days – a joint professional and student celebration of hydrology held each spring semester.  Hydrology Days 2000 (the 20th edition) will be held April 3-6, 2000, in the Lory Student Center.  The objective of Hydrology Days is to blend outstanding hydrologists with students studying hydrology and related water sciences in a four- day meeting.  Student presentations are judged by professional hydrologists and awards are given for the best presentations.  The professionals not only discuss their current research, but also the history of hydrology that relates to their particular field of study.  Hydrologists from all over the world participate in these excellent conversations about hydrology and CSU students are encouraged to take advantage of the opportunity to network into the broad field of hydrology.  For more information, access the Hydrology Days home page:  http://hydrologydays.colostate.edu

 

5.                  GS 592 Water Resources Seminar – This one-credit fall semester seminar addresses broad-based water policy issues particularly pertinent to western water management.  The goal of the seminar is to introduce graduate students, in all majors, to the water policy issues that surround modern water management applications of particular disciplines.  For example, in the fall of 1997, the seminar examined the water issues and concerns of Colorado’s water conservancy/conservation districts.  The 1998 seminar examined ‘flash points’ between local and national water managers (eg the TMDL lawsuits, the Western Water Policy Review Advisory Commission Report, and the Clean Water Action Plan).  The 1999 seminar examined the evolution and nature of ‘watershed management’ and the implications this ‘movement’ may have to traditional western water management, if any.  The fall 2000 seminar is currently being planned.

 

6.                  Fort Collins is home to six major Federal natural resource research laboratories/centers.  The National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the Agricultural Research Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service employ approximately 900 professionals, many of whom work in water-related fields.  Access to such an extensive amount of expertise greatly enriches the educational experiences of many CSU graduate students.

 

7.                  Annual water conferences/workshops held around Colorado – Each year a number of water conferences are held in Colorado in which CSU graduate students participate.   Students often are permitted to attend free or for just the cost of food.  Students enjoy the opportunity to meet water management professionals, discuss the practical application of their research, and explore job opportunities.  They also present papers or provide computer software demonstrations related to their research.  Examples of the Colorado annual water meetings are the: (1) Colorado Water Congress held in Denver each January; (2) South Platte Forum held each October; (3) Arkansas River Forum held in February; and (4) Colorado Water Workshop held in Gunnison, Colorado, each July.  In addition there is a rather constant stream of regional, national and international water-related conferences regularly being held in Colorado in which students participate.  For example, the American Society of Civil Engineers is planning a Watershed Management 2000 Conference for June 21-24, 2000, on the CSU campus in Fort Collins. 

 

8.                  Weekly Water-related Seminars Offered by Departments

 

With many water related graduate programs on campus, there are a number of seminar series that attract ‘water’ students from across campus.  For example, the weekly seminars in Water Resources/Hydrology, Watershed Sciences, Fishery and Wildlife Biology, Environmental Engineering, Agricultural and Bioresource Engineering, Agricultural and Resource Economics, and Environmental Health often have seminar speakers of interest to students studying water from across campus.  The CSU Water Center maintains a list of the water-related seminar series speakers and topics.

 

The CSU Water Center hopes the above information is helpful in deciding that CSU is the place to pursue your graduate education goals in water.  We also hope that should you decide to join us at CSU, you will be able to participate in many of the above activities and greatly enrich your ‘water’ education at CSU.