Most of Arizona's rivers have dried up or are flowing at a fraction of their historic amounts, leaving scientists working on ways to help these fragile waterways and raise awareness about their plight.
The cooperative effort includes the Tucson-based Sonoran Institute.
Sonoran Institute staff members are conducting research along the Santa Cruz River southeast of Tucson, and they are working in the Colorado River Delta in northwest Mexico, where thousands of trees are being planted to restore wildlife habitats.
Institute Executive Director Maria Baier says the organization is tackling a wide range of issues.
"We do renewable energy, we do community design and development, sustainable development," Baier said. "We do all kinds of natural resource conservation programs and projects, and so it's all really about the balance between human activity and the natural world."
Watch a report here on the Santa Cruz River research.