Lucero Radonic

About

Dr. Lucero Radonic is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at Northern Arizona University, where she has been a faculty member since 2023. She is an applied environmental anthropologist working at the intersection of water governance, infrastructure, and environmental change in Latin America and the United States.

Research Interests

Water Governance and Security

• Water governance at the intersection of climate change and urbanization
• Water security at household and landscape levels
• Water access and water rights in urban and rural contexts
• Indigenous water sovereignty and tribal water governance
• Water hauling experiences in rural, unincorporated communities

Urban Political Ecology

• Human/environment interaction within urban landscapes
• Distribution of natural resources in dynamic urban environments
• Transformation of nature for human use in cities
• Environmental governance and policy implementation
• Alignments and misalignments between environmental policies and practices

Infrastructure Studies

• Green infrastructure in cities and decentralized alternatives
• Water and sanitation provisioning systems
• Infrastructure that emulates natural flows
• Critical studies of large infrastructural systems
• Urban water infrastructure transformation

Climate Adaptation and Environmental Justice

• Socio-environmental justice in urban climate adaptation interventions
• Community resilience to environmental change
• Environmental governance in the context of climate change
• Just transitions to sustainable water systems

Education

• Ph.D. Anthropology, University of Arizona (2014)
  • Dissertation research on water management among the Yaquis of Hermosillo, Sonora
  • Dissertation grant recipient for ethnographic research
• B.S. Environmental Sciences, University of Texas El Paso (2005)

Professional Experience

Academic Positions

• Associate Professor, Northern Arizona University (2023-present)
• Assistant Professor, Michigan State University (2014-2023)
• Graduate Student Researcher, University of Arizona (2009-2014)

Leadership Roles

• Director, Water, Society and Policy Lab, NAU
• Principal Investigator, Arizona Water for All Network (NAU component)
• Research Coordinator, Community-based participatory research projects

Research Impact

Dr. Radonic has made significant contributions to environmental anthropology and water governance studies, with over 590 citations of her research. Her work bridges academic research with practical policy applications and community engagement.

Water, Society and Policy Lab

Dr. Radonic directs the Water, Society and Policy Lab at NAU, which focuses on:

Research Objectives

• Training the next generation of researchers in community engagement
• Advancing water security through participatory research
• Building partnerships with diverse community actors and institutions
• Identifying trends in water access and security challenges

Current Projects

• Rural Water Hauling Study - Exploring experiences of water hauling in rural, unincorporated communities
• Tribal Lands Collaboration - Establishing partnerships on Navajo and Hopi tribal lands
• Coconino County Water Security - Household and landscape-level water security research
• Arizona Water Networks - Statewide collaboration on water insecurity

Major Publications

Recent Publications (2023-2024)

• “New Teaching in Participatory Methods for Practicing Anthropology” (2024)

  • Published in Practicing Anthropology
  • Methodological contributions to participatory research

• “It’s a sprint, not a marathon: a case for building short-term partnerships for community-based participatory research” (2023)

  • Published in Qualitative Research
  • Co-authored work on research partnership strategies

• Book Review: “Water beings: From nature worship to the environmental crisis” (2023)

  • Published in Water Alternatives
  • Critical review of V. Strang’s work on human-water relationships

Foundational Publications

• “At The Frontier of Water Conservation: Attending to Relationships, Values, and Practices for Inclusive Infrastructure” (2023)

  • Published in Human Organization
  • Analysis of water conservation and community relationships

• “When Governing Urban Waters Differently: Five Tenets for Socio-Environmental Justice in Urban Climate Adaptation Interventions” (2023)

  • Published in Sustainability
  • Framework for just water governance

• “Pipes and praxis: a methodological contribution to the urban political ecology of water” (2019)

  • Published in Journal of Political Ecology
  • Methodological innovation in water infrastructure studies

• “Becoming with rainwater: A study of hydrosocial relations and subjectivity in a desert city” (2019)

  • Published in Journal of Economic Anthropology
  • Ethnographic analysis of rainwater relationships

• “Re-conceptualising water conservation: Rainwater harvesting in the desert of the southwestern United States” (2019)

  • Published in Water Alternatives
  • Transformation of water governance paradigms

Research Methodology

Dr. Radonic employs innovative anthropological methods including:

• Ethnographic fieldwork and participant observation
• Participatory action research with communities
• Cultural model analysis of water governance
• Multi-sited ethnography across urban and rural contexts
• Collaborative research with policy makers and practitioners

Community Engagement

Tucson Water Conservation Research

• Collaborative research with the City of Tucson
• Analysis of municipal water conservation programs
• Community-based evaluation of water policies
• Integration of cultural values in water management

Indigenous Water Governance

• Research on indigenous water rights in the U.S. Southwest
• Collaborative work with Navajo and Hopi communities
• Integration of traditional ecological knowledge
• Support for tribal water sovereignty initiatives

Mexico-U.S. Transboundary Research

• Water infrastructure developments in Northwestern Mexico
• Human right to water in transboundary contexts
• Cross-cultural water governance analysis
• International collaboration on water security

Arizona Water for All Network

As part of NAU’s participation in the Arizona Water for All Network (launched December 2024), Dr. Radonic leads research efforts to:

• Address water insecurity across Arizona
• Build partnerships between universities and communities
• Develop innovative approaches to water security challenges
• Train researchers in community-engaged methods

Awards and Grants

• IAF Fellowship - Inter-American Foundation fellowship recipient
• Dissertation Research Grant - University of Arizona
• Community Partnership Grants - Multiple awards for participatory research
• NSF Collaborative Research - Contributing researcher on water security projects

Professional Service

Editorial and Review Service

• Reviewer for anthropology and water resources journals
• Editorial board member for environmental anthropology publications
• Reviewer for NSF and other funding agencies

Professional Organizations

• Member of American Anthropological Association
• Society for Applied Anthropology
• Water Alternatives editorial collective
• Society for Environmental Anthropology

Teaching and Mentorship

Course Development

• Environmental anthropology and political ecology
• Participatory research methods
• Water governance and policy analysis
• Urban anthropology and infrastructure studies
• Ethnographic methods and community engagement

Graduate Student Supervision

Dr. Radonic mentors graduate students in:

• Environmental anthropology research methods
• Community-based participatory research
• Water governance and policy analysis
• Ethnographic fieldwork techniques
• Academic writing and publication

Current Research Focus

Dr. Radonic’s ongoing research emphasizes:

• Water security in rural Arizona communities
• Indigenous water sovereignty and governance
• Community-based solutions to water challenges
• Climate adaptation through participatory approaches
• Integration of anthropological methods with policy applications

Research Philosophy

Dr. Radonic’s approach combines rigorous ethnographic research with practical applications for community benefit. Her work emphasizes the importance of centering community voices and experiences in understanding and addressing water challenges, particularly in the context of climate change and environmental justice.

Future Directions

Dr. Radonic continues to advance:

• Participatory methods for environmental research
• Community-university partnerships for water security
• Integration of Indigenous knowledge in water governance
• Anthropological contributions to climate adaptation policy
• Cross-cultural understanding of human-water relationships