The Mississippi River and the Environment
Urban-Rural Systems Research Coordination Network
The Mississippi River basin experiences a variety of challenges, from flooding to urban sprawl to nutrient runoff. A team of researchers will examine how these issues connect to affect the environmental conditions of cities, suburban areas and rural areas — and the people living there.
The UofM Design Collaborative is a partner in the Urban-Rural Systems Research Coordination Network, which received a $500,000 National Science Foundation grant from the Dynamics of Integrated Socio-Environmental Systems program to launch a five-year study. This multi-university is led by Dr. Ulrike Passe, professor of Architecture at Iowa State University. Mr. Andy Kitsinger and Dr. Charles Santo in the Department of City and Regional Planning will lead the Memphis team. Researchers will focus on five metropolitan areas within the Mississippi basin — Minneapolis/St. Paul; Davenport; St. Louis; Memphis; and Baton Rouge, Louisiana — and their satellite communities and adjacent rural areas.
Challenges include:
- Urban and suburban sprawl;
- Disconnected food, energy, and water systems;
- Frequent floods and uncontrolled water runoff;
- Urban heat-induced hospitalizations;
- Lack of ecosystem services; and
- Climate change impacts.
These situations are common throughout the Mississippi River basin and disproportionately affect vulnerable populations. The research network will consider land policy issues that impact the urban-rural interface, including land use and zoning, urban density and floor area ratios, land use patterns, urban nature, urban expansion plans, building designs and infrastructure, as well as urban ecosystems, biodiversity and climate adaptation.
Working groups will develop a comparative classification system that describes the similarities and distinctions between neighboring cities and rural and agricultural places. Researchers plan for this project to lead to new regional policies and government actions that can create more resilient and sustainable environments for people living in the Mississippi River basin and other similar regions.
This research network grew from an initial NSF-funded workshop at Iowa State in 2019, which gathered academic experts and local stakeholders to discuss these challenges and consider steps forward.
For more information on this project, contact Santo at casanto@memphis.edu.