Associate professor joins Abundance Policy Research Consortium
UC Irvine urban planning & public policy Associate Professor Nicola Ulibarri has joined the University of California's Abundance Policy Research Consortium, a group of 12 experts from across California who will spend the next year developing an evidence-based, fundamentals-first policy agenda for the state.
Ulibarri, who was selected as the consortium’s water expert, leads a research group within the UCI Department of Urban Planning & Public Policy that seeks to understand and enhance environmental planning, policy, and regulatory processes, their impact on the environment, and the people who depend on them.
Water is a scarce resource the Abundance Policy Consortium seeks to make more abundant in the Golden State “by reimagining our systems and institutions,” according to consortium literature that also includes the following: “As of 2020, nearly one million Californians were served by water systems out of compliance with state standards while climate change and drought increasingly threaten the state’s water supplies.” In her work with the consortium, Ulibarri will focus on policy levers that make clean, reliable drinking water accessible for all Californians. “I’m excited for the opportunity to think creatively about how California can manage our water differently. For me, abundant water doesn’t mean pulling more water out of the environment, but how we can use the water we already have in a more equitable and people-focused way,” she says.
Other areas of consortium focus are food, housing, safety, healthcare, childcare, eldercare, energy, employment, education, transportation and digital connectivity. The consortium is hosted by the UC Possibility Lab's ongoing Abundance Accelerator initiative.
– Matt Coker