Google.org gives $3.5 million grant to BYU civil engineering professor for research

Google.org gave $3.5 million to Jim Nelson, a professor in the Brigham Young University Department of Civil and Construction Engineering, for his research on global water sustainability. The project is called the River Forecast System and works in connection with the Group on Earth Observation's Global Water Sustainability initiative.

"The Google grant really is to help us spread the impact, deepen the impact, even while we look for a way to transition it to a nonprofit in some way where it can be sustained, continue to provide the resource and the public good that it does," Nelson said.

The Group on Earth Observations is an organization that uses satellite observations of Earth to further water sustainability initiatives. The BYU Civil Engineering department helped develop part of the system.

The grant from Google.org will allow them to continue their research while they transition the software to non-profit organizations.

"Getting the Google grant allows us to ensure that we're going to be there for the next 2-3 years; we are going to be able to drive greater impact," Nelson said.

The system is used worldwide, and Nelson has gone with students to various locations to help implement the program.

"Starting in the Dominican Republic, many study abroad activities (come) out of our department. Last year, we went to Central America, we were working with all seven of the Central American countries. We've been to Ecuador and Peru, Brazil and Colombia," Nelson said.

Riley Hales traveled to the Dominican Republic in connection with the project.

"I specifically worked with them to produce tools to help them manage their reservoirs and forecast how much water is going in and how much should go out," Hales said.

Hales said that he now works more on the technical side of the project while Nelson takes more of the project management side.

"With this Google money, the whole goal is to make sure that those two are not separated from each other. We need to work more closely together so that we can evolve, Hales said. We've found a lot of ways that we are successful right now, but if we want to find more ways to be supportive or to be more efficient in the way we help people, we can't stay isolated from each other.

The grant will ensure that research connected with the river forecast system can continue to move forward.