Mission and Vision

The Center for Urban Waters is a highly collaborative university-led applied science program dedicated to finding globally-applicable solutions to urban water quality problems in the Pacific Northwest. The center provides an intellectual environment where people with a diverse mix of skills can collaborate to develop innovative approaches to environmental restoration and protection and to sustainable urban development. 

The Core of Urban Waters:

• creating sustainable, efficient and equitable water quality systems that support vibrant coastal communities while protecting the environment.
• enhancing collective conversations and decision making by providing timely, credible, and actionable scientific information to coastal communities.
• training students to solve practical real-world problems and to design sustainable city infrastructure and systems.

We strive to be:

• Accessible and responsive to our local community while understanding global applications of our work.
• Always seeking opportunities to identify and solve emerging water issues in coastal cities.
• Respected and recognized for the quality and impact of our work.
• Valued for our leadership and distinct contributions to complex environmental investigations

This vision will be supported by:

• Dynamic interdisciplinary research groups led by accomplished senior university scientists.
• Tangible enthusiasm and support from community leaders.
• Strong ties with UW students, faculty, and their academic and research programs.
• A deliberate and thoughtful community engagement enterprise supported by dedicated resources.
• A diverse and stable funding portfolio that includes dedicated resources to seed new research lines and to reinvest in research infrastructure.
• A clear and efficient university administrative support structure.