AQUASEC is a virtual “umbrella center” that groups projects, people and institutions from all over the world to study water security in the (Arid) Americas.

AQUASEC Center of Excellence for Water Security maintains three objectives:

promote water security

through adoption and innovation with adaptive management

develop science-policy networks

for global-change adaptation in interdisciplinary and cross-regional contexts

create research-based knowledge

to address uncertainty under evolving water security challenges

What is Water Security?

“The capacity of a population to safeguard sustainable access to adequate quantities of acceptable quality water for sustaining livelihoods, human well-being, and socio-economic development, for ensuring protection against water-borne pollution and water-related disasters, and for preserving ecosystems in a climate of peace and political stability.” (definition proposed by the United Nations, UN-Water)

Study Sites: River Basins of the Arid Americas

Resilience and Adaptation in River Basins

United States: Santa Cruz (factsheet), San Bernardino

Mexico: Sonora (factsheet), Yaqui (factsheet)

Chile: Maipo (factsheet), Elqui/Limari (factsheet)

Peru: Piura (factsheet), Chancay-Lambayeque (factsheet)

Argentina: Mendoza-Tunuyan (factsheet)

Brazil: Pajeu, Capibaribe (factsheet)

“The water-food-energy nexus is central to sustainable development. Demand for all three is increasing, driven by a rising global population, rapid urbanization, changing diets and economic growth. Agriculture is the largest consumer of the world’s freshwater resources, and more than one-quarter of the energy used globally is expended on food production and supply. The inextricable linkages between these critical domains require a suitably integrated approach to ensuring water and food security, and sustainable agriculture and energy production worldwide.” – UN-Water

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