Sustained Resources: Advancing Water Science Through Integrated Water Data Management and Community Support

Understanding and addressing water-related challenges - such as floods, droughts, and water quality - requires navigating increasingly complex data, tools, and scientific questions. These challenges underscore the need for robust and sustained cyberinfrastructure (CI) that supports the water science community. The Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc. (CUAHSI) leads the development of CI that supports data sharing, scientific reproducibility, and collaboration to advance water science. This project builds on that role by providing infrastructure that strengthens water research and education through three core objectives: (i) provide robust and reliable water data publishing, (ii) simplify common water data management challenges through human and cyberinfrastructure solutions, and (iii) co-develop, curate, and share training and collaborative resources that prepare the community for transformative water science. The overarching goal is to foster a broad and thriving water science community equipped to produce high-impact, reproducible Earth science to address pressing water-related challenges. This project will deliver an integrated suite of technical and human infrastructure that supports the entire water data lifecycle. Key efforts will modernize the HydroShare Ecosystem to improve data publication, reproducibility, and alignment with FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) and CARE (Collective Benefit, Authority to Control, Responsibility, and Ethics) principles. New services will enable scalable data hosting, reproducible workflow sharing, sensor data management, and enhanced data discovery. Community-facing staff will provide support, data curation, and training tailored to evolving research needs. Broader impacts are embedded throughout, linking CI improvements with open education, targeted engagement, and cross-institutional learning. Investments in FAIR and CARE-aligned data practices, open resources, and collaborative platforms will increase the transparency, reuse, and societal value of scientific research. A virtual library of water science resources, remote support, and regionally distributed in-person workshops will expand access and offer multiple points of connection. While focused on the water science community, these resources can also benefit life-long learners, environmental organizations, and others, helping to increase public engagement with science. Together, these integrated activities will ensure that the tools, data, and infrastructure that facilitate water science will remain responsive and accessible to the communities that use them, thereby expanding capacity to conduct impactful and reproducible research and strengthening STEM workforce development. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.