A multi-year ecological research project has revealed the importance of the annual summer monsoon rains to the supply of water in arid regions of the Southwest. Enrique Vivoni, a professor in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment in the Fulton Schools and ASU’s School of Earth and Space Exploration, had a leading role in the endeavor. The National Science Foundation deemed the project’s findings critical to effective future water resource management as the Southwest faces a forecast of rapid environmental change.