June 03, 2010 –
CALIT2 and CITRIS, a fellow science-and-innovation institute, have joined forces with a nonprofit research group to develop a state blueprint for sustainability.
Energy, water, health, financial and technology experts from the two Gray Davis Institutes for Science and Innovation, as well as the Institute for the Future, a 40-year-old nonprofit research and forecasting group, will collaborate to produce a comprehensive list of key issues and impacts facing the state.
The group will address California’s fiscal, environmental, infrastructure, social and political challenges, and develop strategies for creating a sustainable and desirable future. Among the issues the group will consider: enabling energy development while protecting the environment; creating affordable healthcare; protecting water supplies; and maintaining and expanding the state’s infrastructure.
A workshop last month at the Institute for the Future’s Palo Alto office kicked off the efforts. The 17 attendees included CALIT2 Director Larry Smarr and UC Irvine’s Bill Cooper, a CALIT2-affiliated water researcher.
The multidisciplinary collaboration will result in a public research document that includes a roadmap and forecasts, as well as a toolkit for stakeholders and the general public.
“California is facing enormous systemic challenges,” said Smarr. “Yet by bringing together its public and private sectors, including academia and industry, innovative solutions will emerge which, if acted upon, can once again put California into a leadership position.”
Marina Gorbis, executive director of IFTF, describes the effort as an urgent call to action. “We feel an obligation to apply our skills, knowledge and methodologies to help ensure … a vibrant and responsible economy and society.”
