Since launching in 2022, the NSF CREST Center for Advancement toward Sustainable Urban Systems (CATSUS) has expanded research opportunities for faculty and students at Cal State LA while advancing interdisciplinary research focused on some of the most pressing sustainability challenges facing urban communities.
Led by Principal Investigator and Director Arturo Pacheco-Vega, CATSUS brings together faculty from ECST and the College of Natural and Social Sciences to conduct research in energy systems and management in buildings, advanced materials for energy and water applications, and the resilience of urban water bodies. The Center also includes an education, outreach, and policy-informing component designed to extend the reach and impact of its research.
But CATSUS was designed to do more than advance individual research projects.
A central goal is to build lasting research capacity while developing the next generation of STEM professionals.
At Cal State LA, that investment is supporting faculty research and collaboration, strengthening research infrastructure, and providing undergraduate and graduate students with opportunities to participate in meaningful research.
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The impact extends beyond the numbers. CATSUS support has helped faculty sustain active research programs, develop multidisciplinary collaborations, pursue additional external funding, and mentor students. Center-supported researchers have established collaborations with JPL, South Coast AQMD, the U.S. Department of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Energy, and universities in the United States and abroad.
For students, CATSUS provides opportunities to work alongside faculty on research, gain hands-on experience, develop technical and professional skills, and share their work at regional and national conferences. From 2022 through 2025, the Center provided more than $100,000 to support student research projects, helping provide the materials and equipment needed for hands-on research across multiple laboratories. It also provided supplemental travel support that enabled students to present their work and expand their professional networks.
Through CATSUS, NSF's investment is helping Cal State LA advance important research in urban sustainability while strengthening the people, partnerships, and research capacity needed to sustain that work into the future.
Learn more about NSF CREST CATSUS at https://www.calstatela.edu/research/catsus.
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