The Alabama Water Institute and the Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology are blending social science with hydrology to transform research into impactful, real-world solutions.
CIROH’s Research to Operations, or R2O, team is at the forefront of this effort, working with NOAA’s Office of Water Prediction to transform research into practical water management tools. This team focuses on collaborative research with NOAA’s Office of Water Prediction and creating a Research to Operations Bridge Program that manages data and supports the transition of CIROH’s research into operational applications.
Joining this team is Dr. Travis Loof, a social and communication scientist in The University of Alabama’s College of Communications and Information Sciences, whose research background is in media psychology and the use of technology, such as artificial intelligence.
“My research interests are mainly centered around how people process and perceive media messages and technologies,” said Loof. “The work I hope to do at AWI and CIROH will be a direct extension of that work.”
Loof’s focus on human behavior and perception aims to ensure that CIROH’s research does not just reach completion, but also finds meaningful use in the communities it serves.
“This will allow me to take all of these important research insights and bring them into actual operational capacity,” he said. “Seeing your work have a direct impact on your nation and community is one of the most gratifying achievements we can aim for.”
One of CIROH’s four main research themes is the application of social, economic and behavioral science in water resources. The goal is to connect researchers, operators, modelers, data scientists, social scientists, decision-makers and policy experts in a collaborative hydrology community. This coordination will help uncover risk perceptions, user needs and forecast design preferences across diverse communities within the U.S.
With his role in R2O, Loof plans to establish a clear path for social science-related research within the institute’s framework.
“Many of the incredible CIROH projects can benefit from a social science perspective,” he said. “Ultimately, a tool or piece of research is only helpful if it is being actively used by the target population, and I hope to facilitate that process.”
Loof also aims to learn extensively about all of CIROH’s projects, enabling him to connect research teams and increase CIROH’s capacity to support government partners like NOAA.
“One of the major draws of this position was how it is uniquely an interdisciplinary collaborative work environment,” he said. “I couldn’t pick just one collaboration, but rather it is my goal to facilitate this interaction by making connections between projects, research teams and individuals in order to operationalize the important work that is being done.”