LADWP manages the water supply for about 4 million residents. LADWP has the critical task of ensuring that the water supply can support a growing population in the face of a changing climate. Read about how UCLA helps.

Watch the the first in a series of webinar discussions on defensible space that SLAGC is organizing. During Policymaking Under Uncertainty: Zone 0 and Vegetation Clearance, experts discussed what is and—crucially—what isn't known about the role vegetation plays in fire spread. Read more.

SLAGC brought together dozens of UCLA experts from across disciplines to discuss their research related to the 2025 LA fires, their impacts, and recovery efforts over the course of three lunch dialogue events in October. Read more and watch videos of the experts discussing their work.

SLAGC concluded the series of lunch dialogues on October 23 with another group of six researchers covering a range of topics, including an overview of UCLA’s mental and physical health research related to the fires to soil health, smoke and air quality impacts on people, and effects of the fires on marine life. Read more.

Following up on the October 2 event, SLAGC curated another, equally diverse range of experts to present at the October 10 lunch. Some of the presentations built on the topics of the previous event—like the role urban trees played in the dynamics of fire spread in January 2025—while others introduced new topics, like the impact of the fires on education and service access of children in foster care. Read more.

At the first of the three lunch dialogue events, attendees heard from experts working in the areas of public policy, water infrastructure, urban planning, public health communications and community outreach, and the role vegetation plays in the vulnerability of the built environment. Read more.

The January 2025 fires in Los Angeles made clear an issue that has been brewing for years: as wildfires become more urban in nature, what is the role of urban water systems in their prevention, response and recovery? How should water systems prepare for 21st century wildfire events? What policy changes and infrastructure investments are needed to increase resilience? Read about what the experts had to say about these questions at the first of four workshops hosted through a water supply + wildfire research and policy coordination network.

No roadmap for recovery from the devastating January 2025 LA fires would be complete without meaningful engagement and inclusion of those who lived through the disaster and who are now navigating its aftermath. Read about how UCLA facilitated a robust community engagement effort that ensured the voices, concerns, and perspectives of fire survivors could inform the Blue Ribbon Commission’s recommendations.

A new study from UCLA experts breaks down the misconceptions around the limitations vegetation management could have played in mitigating the destructiveness of the January 2025 LA fires. 

Director of UCLA's California Center for Sustainable Communities Stephanie Pincetl writes, "It is time to unleash creative imagination about how we create a livable future for the 10 million people in LA county." 

Read more about her thoughts on reimagining how we build and why.