As a new member of this community, I'm delighted to briefly introduce myself: I'm an academic and practitioner in the field of urban and environmental planning, with an interest in nature/resources/water conservation. I've lived and worked for 40+ years in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, a part of the arid US Southwest region, and on daily basis encountered/crossed challenges and news about drought, heatwaves, wildfires, flash floods and other climate issues in this region and beyond. I'm glad to be here to share and learn with all of you in this community.