Environmental and climate solutions research

McKelvey’s researchers advance engineering solutions related to environmental challenges, climate change mitigation, and climate adaptation. We are particularly motivated by the knowledge that frontline communities, many of which are in St. Louis, are overburdened by these environmental hazards. We will further our impact on developing climate solutions by leading robust, impactful research endeavors. In alignment with the University’s Here and Next strategic goal related to environmental research, and motivated by the urgency of environmental crises, we will build on our current and historical strengths in carbon management, aerosols science and engineering, water management, clean energy technologies, sensing capabilities, thermal management, and geospatial science. We will collaborate with other environmental scholars across WashU, including in Arts & Sciences and in the new School of Public Health. This initiative will strengthen our current position as a distinctive hub of contemporary environmental engineering.

Our Commitments

We will:

• Coalesce our work to mitigate carbon-emitting energy systems around a Center for Carbon Management.
• Maximize the impact of existing centers, including the Center for Aerosol Science and Engineering and the Center for Water Innovation, by connecting them with both large- scale funding opportunities and relevant industrial sectors.
• Reinforce cross-departmental and cross-discipline investments in clean energy harvesting and storage.
• Leverage the Center for the Environment structure to actively pursue new transdisciplinary research efforts with climate and other environmental scholars across WashU.

Why:

• As evidenced by the Grand Challenges of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) as well as the now immediately visible implications of climate change, work on solutions to some of our biggest environmental challenges will be paramount for the next several decades.
• The announcement of WashU’s School of Public Health and the investment in the universitywide Center for the Environment present catalyzing opportunities for McKelvey to advance our existing strengths in related areas.
• There are opportunities for us to further enhance our competitive differentiation from other schools of engineering via investment in research domains like aerosols, water management, carbon management, and sensing technologies, while extending these strengths into natural adjacencies.
• Sponsored research funding opportunities in environmental engineering continue to increase across numerous federal agencies and non-federal sources, creating an imperative for us to scale our efforts in this field.