The changing climate presents many challenges to water security, agriculture, and human health. We look at the health of the urban environment through the lens of the microbiome — the ambient population of bacteria and other microorganisms that pervade our environment.

The macro-trend of human consolidation into cities for purposes of employment and access to services is one that is not likely to reverse itself. Cities require constant inputs of food, water and energy to sustain population, in addition to maintenance of the environment in ways that limit exposure to disease and otherwise support public health. Cities also produce waste and pollutants, and urban density can in itself be a vector for the spread of disease. A model of food, energy and water systems for cities cannot be considered without accounting for the function and health of the microbiome.