Golf courses require large amounts of water and other resources. The Southwestern United States has experienced rapid population growth, coupled with a dramatic increase in the built environment and golf courses. This paper aims to assess the environmental sustainability of golf courses in the Phoenix Metropolitan area at multiple scales in terms of water, ecosystem services and management practices. We report on the number and spatial distribution of golf courses, the amount of water used by them, the ecosystem services they provide, potential social injustice issues within the area, and the sustainability of management practices. There are 197 golf courses within the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, which are composed of 465 patches covering an area around 57 square miles. The golf courses within the Phoenix Active Management Area use around 500 acre-feet of water per year. Golf courses are categorized as an industrial water user and account for roughly half of all industrial water use in the Phoenix Active Management Area. The primary water source for golf courses is groundwater, with effluent as their second most-used source. Most golf courses are located in areas with a median household income between $61,333-$90,185 and only one was located in an area with a median household income below $27,393. Golf courses in the region provide a number of ecosystem services and help the local economy in multiple ways. However, given the scarcity of water and the projected drier and hotter climate in the American Southwest, we suggest curbing the expansion of golf courses and implement more sustainable management practices.

Due to what is known as the “biologically desert fallacy” and the pervasive westernized ideal of wilderness that has influenced widespread American Conservation culture for millennia, urban areas have long been deemed as areas devoid of biodiversity. However, cities can contribute significantly to regional biodiversity and provide vital niches for wildlife, illuminating the growing awareness that cities are crucial to the future of conservation and combating the global biodiversity crisis. In terms of the biodiversity crisis, bats are a relevant species of concern. In many studies, different bat species have been broadly classified according to their ability to adapt to urban environments. There is evidence that urban areas can filter bat species based on traits and behavior, with many bats possessing traits that do not allow them to live in cities. The three broad categories are urban avoiders, urban adapters, or urban exploiters based upon where their abundance is highest along a gradient of urban intensity. A common example of an urban exploiter bat is a Mexican Free-tailed bat, which can thrive and rely on urban environments and it is found in the Phoenix Metropolitan area. Bats are important as even in urban environments they play vital ecological roles such as cactus pollination, insect management, and seed dispersal. Bat Crazy is a thesis project focused on urban enhancement and the field of urban biodiversity. The goals of this thesis are to observe how bio-conscious urban cities that work to promote species conservation can serve as a positive tool to promote biodiversity and foster community education and engagement for their urban environment.

For the honors thesis project, a group of five individuals collaborated to design and implement a sustainable business in the ASU community. Kandi Society is a rising jewelry brand whose top priorities include giving recycled plastic a new purpose, philanthropy, and making a welcoming, creative environment for our customers. We designed the Eco-Bead with 3D CAD modeling and produced it through a process called plastic injection molding which is explained in detail in the final paper. Kandi Society instilled a positive impact on ASU students by igniting a sustainability spark and increasing interest in repurposing materials in the future.

Precise addition of agricultural inputs to maximize yields, especially in the face of environmental stresses, becomes important from the financial and sustainability perspectives. Given compounding factors such as climate change and disputed water claims in the American Southwest, the ability to build resistance against salinity stress becomes especially important. It was evaluated if an algal bio-fertilizer was able to remediate salinity stress in Solanum Lycopersicum. A hydroponic apparatus was employed, and data from Burge Environmental’s MiProbes™ both were able to demonstrate remediation. Future research could include determining the minimum dosage of algal fertilizer sufficient to induce this result, or the maximum concentration of salt that an algal treatment can provide a protective effect against.