We are excited to announce that the DESAL Research Group, in collaboration with Profs. Peiying Hong (KAUST) and Gary Amy (Clemson University, USA), has joined the KAUST Center of Excellence for Sustainable Food Security. This milestone marks a significant step forward in our mission to advance sustainable desalination technologies and apply our expertise to the growing challenges of food security in arid regions.

As water scarcity increasingly affects agricultural productivity, integration of our group into the Center enables us to contribute directly to innovative solutions that address the water-food-energy nexus. Our study will promote the Center's efforts to improve water use efficiency, develop sustainable biosystems, and promote resilient food production practices.

“Joining the Center represents an exciting opportunity for us to leverage our expertise in desalination and wastewater treatment to directly address food security challenges,” says Professor Noreddine Ghaffour. “Together, we aim to drive impactful research that supports Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 by utilizing non-conventional water resources for irrigation, particularly for hydroponic Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) farming of high-value food crops."