Sustainable LA Grand Challenge Faculty Director Alex Hall discusses his vision for a Santa Ana event ranking system, similar to how hurricanes are ranked, and how this can help with disaster preparedness.
Recent News Articles
On May 7, 2026 SLAGC convened about 130 civic and community leaders, researchers, and philanthropists for a wildfire research symposium, Urban Fires: Risk and Resilience. The aim was to build the roadmap for a more resilient American West in the face of dynamic and evolving disasters with a focus on how to pioneer new ways for universities to collaborate across disciplines, and with civic institutions and communities to create more impactful and responsive research.
Read the report summarizing the January 23, 2026 UCLA and UC ANR Urban Water Supply + Fire working group convening, organized by UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation, the Sustainable LA Grand Challenge, and UC ANR. More than 50 experts gathered to examine a critical and underexplored issue: how to finance water systems as fire risks change and intensify. Read more for key insights.
At a panel organized by the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation, in partnership with the Emmett Institute on Climate Change & the Environment and the Sustainable LA Grand Challenge, for California state legislative staff at the UC Student and Policy Center in Sacramento on March 5, 2026, experts tackled lessons from recent flooding in Merced County and fires in LA County.
The Sustainable LA Grand Challenge will host a day-long symposium Urban Firestorms: Risk and Resilience on Thursday, May 7, 2026. Join us as we work together to build the roadmap for a more resilient American West in the face of dynamic and evolving disasters with a focus on how to pioneer new ways for universities to collaborate across disciplines, and with civic institutions and communities to create more impactful and responsive research.
On January 23, 2026, the UCLA and UC ANR Urban Water Supply + Fire working group—organized by the Sustainable LA Grand Challenge, Luskin Center for Innovation, and the California Institute for Water Resources—convened 47 experts for the second of four workshops digging into the realities of planning water systems for a future with changing fire risks. Read more.
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.
As urban wildfires become more frequent and severe, what role can water systems realistically play in protecting lives, supporting emergency response, and guiding resilient rebuilding? A new report from the Luskin Center for Innovation, Water Systems’ Wildfire Fighting Capacities and Expectations, begins to answer this question. The report synthesizes the findings and discussion from a convening of more than 50 experts convened through the UCLA-UCANR Water Supply + Wildfire Research and Policy Coordination Network to tackle these critical questions.
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.