Arizona Illustrated

An Unequivocal Truth: Climate change is personal to some Arizona residents, and few know this better than University of Arizona climate scientist, Jessica Tierney. She is a lead author on the most recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC, a United Nations body which is the world authority on our changing climate. This latest report is perhaps the starkest yet - laying out unequivocal evidence of the role that human activity play in warming the planet. Tierney and her team examine what this might mean for Arizona, our life-giving monsoon season, and the ongoing drought. Solastalgia: “Solastalgia” is a term used to describe the feeling of grief caused from the disconnection to our natural world and witnessing the depletion of earth’s resources. Solasalgia is on the rise and brings a host of negative mental health effects, making it difficult to be pro-active in the face of so much devastation. University of Arizona professor, Sabrina Helm, Ph.D. who researches climate change anxiety, explains how we can navigate these anxieties and feel more empowered to make meaningful behavioral changes needed to mitigate the impacts of global warming. Power Connectors [2020 Encore Story]: University of Arizona’s Center for Innovation, located at the UA Tech Park, has been chosen by the U.S. Department of Energy to be one of just six “Power Connectors”: sites ideally suited to serve as arenas for the American-Made Solar Prize, a national competition designed to energize U.S. solar manufacturing. It’s a grand opportunity for our region to attract innovators and cement itself as a worldwide economic hub for the development of solar technology - and to bring new forms of clean, renewable energy to our local electric grid. Butterfly Explosion Tucson went from one of its driest monsoons on record in 2020 to one of the wettest in 2021. The surrounding deserts sprang to life with all the rain, resulting in one of most noticeable increases in butterflies in recent memory. Entomologist John Palting and Katy Prudic take us to Tanque Verde Falls to see massive amounts of American Snout and other species of butterflies dominating the landscape and tell us what this one year might mean for the future.