2016 Texas Water Roadmap Forum to be held by the Texas Water Development Board and the National Science Foundation Research Coordination Network for Climate, Energy, Environment and Engagement in Semiarid Regions on November 29th
The 2016 water roadmap forum will be one day facilitated charrette and plenary session – is organized and sponsored by the Texas Water Development Board and National Science Foundation Research Coordination Network on Climate, Energy, Environment and Engagement in Semiarid Regions (NSF/RCN-CE3SAR). The RCN-CE3SAR is the forum facilitator. The forum will be hosted by Texas A&M University–San Antonio (A&M-SA) with arrangements coordinated by the Institute for Water Resources Science and Technology at A&M-SA.
The forum will bring together Texans from diverse technical, academic, research, management, and business backgrounds in water to participate in the third in a series of water roadmap forums facilitated by NSF/RCN-CE3SAR.
Envision a future Texas where water security is assured for people, industry, food production, and nature. The main goal of the water roadmap forum is to prioritize and frame key milestones with the overall objective of securing that future. To achieve this goal, the water roadmap forum will bring together individuals from diverse backgrounds in water. These will be individuals who are interested in securing Texas’ water future, while accelerating growth of Texas’ water infrastructure, technologies, industries, and sustainable water use. They will represent Texas’ leading water sectors, including water associations and other non-governmental organizations, research institutes and universities, public agencies, industry, and water utilities, districts, and authorities.
The water roadmap forum is designed to bring forth partnerships to complement, supplement, strengthen, enhance, and extend the work, efforts, and accomplishments of Texas’ key water stakeholders. We hope to establish collaborative models and solutions. New funding sources, such as through the SWIFT program, are now available for financing rural and urban water infrastructure. We don’t expect to solve all challenges at once, so the water roadmap forum will focus on areas identified in the previous two water roadmap forum as critical or emerging and in need of actions that can be accomplished. Areas identified include:
- Access to, sharing, and use of information, data, communication, expertise, science, and policy that cross disciplines, campuses, networks, and resources;
- Employment, workforce training, and security; and
- Research, current and planned.
This is an invitation-only event due to the scope of our agenda and the facilitation process. Invitees are leading principles of water companies, associations, university research centers and other Texas research institutes, and others interested in Texas water industries and management. The water forum website is at http://waterforum.ce3sar.org/
Previous water roadmap forum reports can be downloaded here:
The 2016 Water Roadmap Forum Agenda & Charrette Activities
A&M-SA – Vista Room, 4th Floor, Central Academic Building Bldg.
8:15 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. • November 29, 2016
Registration and Breakfast
8: 15 a.m. – 8:55 a.m.
Plenary Session 1: “Establishing the Point of Departure for the Water Roadmap Forum & Charrette Process”
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. (60 minutes)
Welcome, Introduction to charrette objectives and logistics, and TWDB opportunities
- Introduction of sponsors and background, examples, and significance of preceeding water forums – Rudy Rosen [5 minutes]
- Presentation of the charrette process, scope, pre-charrette survey results, and “Rules of Engagement” – Jorge Venegas [10 minutes]
- Facilitated plenary discussion on, and formal documentation of, roles, drivers, and expectations of the charrette participants – Jorge Venegas [10 minutes]
- Welcome to A&M-SA and Introduction by Dr. Cynthia Matson, A&M-SA President, and sponsors [5 minutes]
- SWIFT Funding and other opportunities – Kathleen Jackson (TWDB) [25 minutes: approx 15 min. presentation and 10 min. Q&A]
Breakout Session 1: “Breakout Group Discussions Round 1”
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 a.m. (120 minutes)
Facilitated Breakout Group Discussions. Participants select their first choice of discussion topics.
- Breakout Group No. 1a: Data, Information, Communication, Sharing, Expertise
- This breakout group will focus on a discussion overcome impediments to communicating, transmitting, and accessing data, research needs, expertise, and other information about Texas water science, policy, and research to increase and improve its use by decision makers, agencies, and others. How can information be shared most effectively and efficiently? Ideally, who should lead efforts to develop information sharing resources?
- Breakout Group No. 1b: Workforce, Education Needs
- This breakout group will focus on a discussion of the need for more highly educated, skilled, and degreed workers for the future. What are current and future water workforce needs? How do we address these needs to the benefit of Texas’ water industries, groundwater conservation districts, utilities and others?
- Breakout Group No. 1c: Research Needs I
- This breakout group will focus on a discussion of the most pressing current and future research needs in the areas of water sources and transport, including but not limited to the following: conventional sources, reservoirs, broundater, aquifer storage and recovery, gray water, reuse, pipelines, monitoring, rainwater harvesting, energy usage, aging infrastructure, and loss/leakage.
- Breakout Group No. 1d: Research NeedsII
- This breakout group will focus on a discussion of the most pressing current and future research needs in the areas of water use and enabling technologies, including but not limited to the following: agriculture, municipal, industrial, new technologies, membranes, user behavior and perceptions, valuation, infrastructure and aging, regulatory environment, artifical wetlands, education, “big” data, information management, and smart systems
[Note: Depending on the number of charrette participants and their interest in specific topics, additional breakout groups may be formed, as needed]
Lunch Break, Networking and Plenary Session 2 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. (60 minutes)
Plenary Session 2: “Setting the Stage for Action”
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
- The National Science Foundation RCN-CE3SAR – Luis Cifuentes [5 minutes]
- Partnerships for action – Andrew Sansom (Meadows Center for Water and Environment) [25 minutes: approx 15 min. presentation and 10 min. Q&A]
- Texas Water Development Board expectations for the afternoon charrette – Robert Mace [5 minutes]
- Presentation of the charrette process, scope, and “Rules of Engagement” – Jorge Venegas [10 minutes]
Breakout Session 2: “Breakout Group Discussions Round 2”
1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. (90 minutes)
Facilitated Breakout Group Discussions. Participants select their choice of discussion session.
- Breakout Group No. 2a: Funding Opportunities
- This breakout group will focus on a discussion of funding opportunities that are available to address identified needs. Are there partnerships that can be created to access these opportunities, either now or in the future? In particular, how does SWIFT funding factor into addressing the needs identified in earlier breakout sessions.
- Breakout Group No. 2b: Partnership Opportunities
- This breakout group will focus on a discussion of partnership opportunities that are available to address identified needs. Are there funding opportunities that can be sought using these partnerships? In particular, how does SWIFT funding factor into addressing the needs identified in earlier breakout sessions.
[Note: Depending on the number of charrette participants and their interest in specific topics, additional breakout groups may be formed, as needed.
Plenary Session 3 2:45 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. (45 minutes)
Plenary Session 3a: “Plenary Presentations – Breakout Group Discussions Round 1“
2:45 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. (30 minutes)
Each Breakout Group will present the highlights of their discussions in Round 1 to all participants in the charrette [7 minutes + 2 minutes Q&A each, strictly timed; length will be adjusted if there are more than four breakout groups]
Plenary Session 3b: “Plenary Presentations – Breakout Group Discussions Round 2“
3:15 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. (30 minutes)
Each Breakout Group will present the highlights of their discussions in Round 2 to all participants in the charrette [7 minutes + 2 minutes Q&A each, strictly timed; length will be adjusted if there are more than four breakout groups]
Plenary Session 4 3:45 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. (15 minutes)
Plenary Session 4: “The Path Ahead”
3:45 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. (15 minutes)
Facilitated plenary discussion on, and formal documentation of, a preliminary consensus among charrette participants on the content of the presentations done in Plenary Sessions 3a and 3b.
Adjourn for the Day at 4:00 p.m.