Environmental Engineering Seminar Series
The Environmental Engineering Seminar Series allows faculty members, researchers, and professionals both affiliated and outside of UB to present their research to students within the civil, structural, and environmental engineering field.
2026 - 2027 Environmental Engineering Seminar Series
Past Seminars
May 16, 2025
Xunchang Fei, PhD
Associate Professor
School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis
April 18, 2025
Chris Li, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Chemistry
University at Buffalo
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis
April 11, 2025
Agnes Thorarinsdottir, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Chemistry
University of Rochester
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis
March 10, 2025
Lynn Katz, PhD
Professor and Hussein M. Alharthy Centennial Chair, Department of Civil Engineering
Director, Center for Water and the Environment
University of Texas at Austin
4:00 P.M. | 201 Natural Sciences Complex, North Campus
February 28, 2025
Yifan Cheng, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Earth Sciences
University at Buffalo
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
February 14, 2025
Kang Sun, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering
University at Buffalo
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
December 6, 2024
Gina Ginevra Pope, PhD
Clinical Assistant Professor
Department of Geology
University at Buffalo
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
November 22, 2024
Elizabeth Thomas, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Geology
University at Buffalo
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
November 15, 2024
Aurora del Carmen Munguía-López, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
University at Buffalo
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
November 8, 2024
Kimberly Parker, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Energy, Environmental and Chemical Engineering
Washington University in St. Louis
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
November 1, 2024
Christy Tyler, PhD
Professor
Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences
College of Science
Rochester Institute of Technology
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
October 18, 2024
Gabriele Villarini, PhD
Professor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
Princeton University
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
October 4, 2024
Paige Novak, PhD
Department Head and Joseph T. and Rose S. Ling Chair in Environmental Engineering
Department of Civil, Environmental and Geo-Engineering,
University of Minnesota
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
September 27, 2024
Bridget Hegarty, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
Case Western University
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
May 3, 2024
Colleen E. Bronner, PhD
Associate Professor of Teaching
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
University of California, Davis
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
April 29, 2024
Samantha Mehltretter
PhD Candidate, Water Resources Engineering
University of Guelph
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
April 26, 2024
Henry Selkirk
Program Scientist, Atmospheric Composition,
Earth Science Division, Science Mission Directorate,
NASA Headquarters
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
April 19, 2024
Gang Wu, PhD
Professor, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
University at Buffalo
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
April 5, 2024
Mary Jo Kirisits, PhD Professor and J. Neils Thompson Centennial Teaching Fellow in Civil Engineering, University of Texas at Austin
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
March 15, 2024
Mohsen Ghafari, PhD Senior R&D Engineer, Xylem Inc.
11 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
December 1, 2023
Elizabeth A. Edwards Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry and Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto
3:30 P.M. | 109 Knox Hall
November 10, 2023
Lina Mu Department of Eipdemiology and Environmental Health, School of Public Health and Health Professions, University at Buffalo
11: 00 A..M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
November 3, 2023
Jennifer A. Surtees Department of Biochemistry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Science, University at Buffalo
11: 00 A..M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
October 16, 2023
Janet Hering, PhD - Director Emerita Swiss Federal Institute of Acquatic Science & Technology (EAWAG), Professor Emerita, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich & Lausanne
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
October 11, 2023
Nancy G. Love, PhD, PE, BCEE - Borchardt and Glysson Collefiate Professor Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
September 22, 2023
Aleksandra Azczuka, PhD - Assistant Professor Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
May 5, 2023
Shannon Seneca, PhD, REHS/RS, EIT (Haudenosaunee Environmental Engineer) - Assistant Faculty Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
April 28, 2023
Chang Ding, PhD - Scientist Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
April 14, 2023
Sangwoo Shin, PhD - Assistant Professor Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering University at Buffalo
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
March 31, 2023
Karl G. Linden, PhD - Mortenson Professor in Sustainable Development Department of Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering University of Colorado Boulder
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
February 24, 2023
"Designing for the future: A roadmap to advance climate resilience of the U.S. energy Sector"
Sayanti Mukherjee, PhD - Assistant Professor Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering University at Buffalo
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
November 11, 2022
"Overview of Best Practices in Sustainable Waste Management in Rural Areas"
Daniela Gavrilescu, PhD - Lecturer Department of Environmental Engineering Technical University Gheorghe Asachi Iasi, Romania
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
October 14, 2022
"Scaling wastewater surveillance in response to COVID-19 and in Preparation for Emerging Pathogens"
David Larson, PhD, MPH - Associate Professor Department of Public Health Syracuse University
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
October 7, 2022
"Ecohydraulic Approaches for Effective Ecological River Restoration"
Abul Baki, PhD - Associate Professor Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Clarkson University
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
September 26, 2022
"New Processes Enabled by Innovative Materials for Environmental Applications"
Xing Xie, PhD - Associate Professor & Carlton S. Wilder Junior Professor School of Civil and Environmental Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology
11:00 A.M. | 223 Jarvis Hall
| March 4, 2022 | Christy Remucal, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Associate Professor |
| Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering | |
| Zoom | University of WIsconsin, Madison |
| February 18, 2022 | David R. Steward, PhD, PE, PG, F.ASCE |
| 11:00 a.m. | Professor, Walter B. Booth Distinguished Professorship |
| Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | |
| Zoom | North Dakota State University |
| February 4, 2022 | Md Khaled Hossain, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Professor |
| Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | |
| Zoom | University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh |
| December 10, 2021 | Pengfei Xue, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Associate Professor |
| Department of Civil, Environmental and Geospatial Engineering | |
| Zoom | Michigan Technological University |
| November 19, 2021 | Qi Li, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering | |
| Zoom & 223 Jarvis Hall | Cornell University |
| November 12, 2021 | Xinwei Mao, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering | |
| Zoom | Stony Brook University |
| November 5, 2021 | Ian Bradley, PhD; Yinyin Ye, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professors |
| Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering | |
| Zoom & 223 Jarvis Hall | University at Buffalo |
| Event Page | Application of Wastewater-based Epidemiology to Track COVID-19: Opportunities and Challenges |
| October 29, 2021 | Kevin SImmons, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Chief Material Scientist, Team Lead Engineered Materials |
| Zoom & 223 Jarvis Hall | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory |
| Event Page | Elastomeric Materials in Harsh Hydrogen Environments |
| October 22, 2021 | Nirupam Aich, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering | |
| Zoom | University at Buffalo |
| Event Page | Sustainable Materials for Advanced WateR Treatment (SMART) in the 2020s |
| October 15, 2021 | James Jensen, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Professor |
| Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering | |
| Zoom & 223 Jarvis Hall | University at Buffalo |
| Event Page | Hurricane Ida: Environmental Engineering Perspectives |
| October 1, 2021 | Holly Buck, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Environment and Sustainability | |
| Zoom | University at Buffalo |
| Event Page | Carbon Capture, Use and Storage: The Social and Policy Landscape |
| September 24 2021 | George Guo, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Professor |
| Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering | |
| Zoom | Rutgers University |
| September 17, 2021 | Paschalis Alexandridis PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | UB Distinguished Professor |
| Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering | |
| Zoom | University at Buffalo |
| February 12, 2021 | Lu Liu, PhD; Reinaldo Alcalde, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Research Associate; Postdoctoral Research Scholar |
| Houston Advanced Research; California Institute of Technology | |
| Zoom | See email for invite |
| February 26, 2021 | Mim Rahimi |
| 12:00 p.m. | Postdoctoral Research Associate |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | |
| Seminar Title | Electrochemistry for climate change mitigation: The emergence of electrochemical carbon capture |
| February 26, 2021 | Joshua Jack |
| 12:00 p.m. | Postdoctoral Research Associate |
| Princeton University | |
| Seminar Title | Rethinking the carbon economy: A quest for decarbonization via hybrid CO2 valorization |
| March 12, 2021 | Yalin Li, PhD & Pinfeng Yu, PhD | |
| 12:00 p.m. | Postdoctoral Research Associate; Post-doctoral Research Fello | |
| University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign; Rice University | ||
| Li's Seminar Title | Advancing the sustainability of engineered systems through experimentation and quantitative sustainable design | |
| Yu's Seminar Title | The good viruses: Phage-based biofilm engineering for water treatment and reuse |
| April 9, 2021 | Boya Xiong, PhD | |
| 12:00 p.m. | Assistant Professor, Civil, Environmental and Geo-Engineering | |
| University of Minnesota | ||
| Xiong's Seminar Page | Environmental Degradation of Polymers: An example of Polyacrylamide and An Outlook for Plastics |
| April 30, 2021 | Jenny E. Zenobio, PhD; Amanda N. Quay, PhD | |
| 12:00 p.m. | Chancellor, Postdoctoral Fellow ; Graduate Research Assistant | |
| University of California, Irvine; Stanford University | ||
| Zenobio's Talk Title | Reductive Destruction of Persistent Organic Pollutants by Bimetallic Nanoparticles | |
| Quay's Talk Title | Behavioral Responses to Environmental & Policy Changes in Agricultural Systems |
| September 13, 2019 | Charles Werth, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Professor and Bettie Margaret Smith Chair |
| Department of Civil, Architecture and Environmental Engineering | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | University of Texas at Austin |
| Seminar Page | Electron Shuttle REcycling Allows Bacteria to Survive by Reducing Metal Oxides Trapped in Soil and Sediment Pore Spaces too small for Cell Access |
| September 27, 2019 | Michael Bergin, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Professor |
| Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Duke University |
| Topic | Low-cost sensors and deep learning: The future of improving environmental and human health |
| October 25, 2019 | Ameet J. Pinto, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, | |
| Affiliated Faculty, Marine and Environmental Sciences | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Northeastern University |
| Seminar Page | How do we manage the Drinking Water Microbiome? |
| November 8, 2019 | Shenqiang, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, | |
| Affiliated Faculty, Marine and Environmental Sciences | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Northeastern University |
| Seminar Page | How do we manage the Drinking Water Microbiome? |
| January 31 | Yinyin Ye, PhD |
| 12:00 p.m. | Postdoctoral Research Associate |
| Pacific Northwest National Laboratory | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | |
| Seminar Page | The Fate and Detection of Human Viruses in Water Environments |
| February 14 | Kaoru Ikuma, PhD |
| 12:00 p.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | |
| Iowa State University | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | |
| Seminar Page | Environmental Microbiology: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly |
| February 21 | Melina Bautista, PhD |
| 12:00 p.m. | Postdoctoral Research Fellow |
| CIvil and Environmental Engineering Department | |
| University of Michigan | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | |
| Seminar Page | Improving dirnking water quality by leveraging the microbiome |
| May 10, 2019 | Andrea I. Silverman, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil & Urban Engineering | |
| NYU Tandon School of Engineering | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Department of Global Health |
| NYU Collge of Global Public Health |
| May 3, 2019 | Abul Basar Baki, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Clarkson University |
| Seminar Page | Nature-like Fishpasses for Aquatic Connectivity of Riverine Systems to Conserve and Restore Fish Habitat |
| April 26, 2019 | Teng Zeng PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Syracuse University |
| April 19, 2019 | Corey A. Krabbenhoft, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Postdoctoral Associate |
| College of Arts and Sciences and RENEW Institute | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | University at Buffalo |
| Seminar Page | Recognizing the Role of Anthropogenic Stressors in Aquatic Ecosystem Function |
| March 29, 2019 | James N. Jensen |
| 11:00 a.m. | Professor |
| Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | University at Buffalo |
| Seminar Page | Optimizing Solar Thermal Disinfection Troughs: Trisectrices, Nephroids and Humanitarian Engineering |
| March 15, 2019 | Joannes J. Westerink |
| 11:00 a.m. | Joseph and Nona Ahearn Professor in Computational Science and Engineering |
| Joseph and Nona Henry J. Massman Chairman | |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering & Earth Sciences |
| University of Notre Dame | |
| Seminar Page | Towards heterogeneous Process, Scale and Model Coupling in Simulating the Hydrodynamics of the Coastal Ocean |
| March 8, 2019 | Dan Li, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Department of Earth and Environment |
| Boston University | |
| Seminar Page | Urban Heat Island: New Perspectives on an Old Topic |
| Feb 22, 2019 | Lee Gordon, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Senior Project Manager |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | New York State Research and Development Authority |
| Seminar Page | West Valley Site Overview and Engineering Challenges |
| Feb 8, 2019 | Yingje Hu, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Department of Geography |
| University at Buffalo | |
| Seminar Page | Exploring Geo-Text Data: Place Names, Place Relations and Place Sentiments |
| Nov. 16, 2018 | Miriam Diamond, PhD |
| 12:00 p.m. | Professor |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Department of Earth Sciences |
| University of Toronto | |
| Seminar Page | E-waste as the end product of our digital revolution |
| Nov. 2, 2018 | Anne Mikelonis, PhD |
| 12:00 p.m. | Environmental Engineer and Researcher |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) |
| EPA's National Homeland Security Research Center | |
| Decontamination and Consequence Management Division |
| Oct. 26, 2018 | Kristine Stepenuck, PhD |
| 12:00 p.m. | Extension Assistant Professor |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources |
| University of Vermont | |
| Seminar Page | The role of citizen science in natural resource management and policy |
| Oct. 12, 2018 | April Z. Gu, PhD |
| 12:00 p.m. | Professor |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | School of Civil and Environmental Engineering |
| Cornell University | |
| Seminar Page | S2EBPR enables sustainable nutrient removal with carbon footprint reduction |
| Oct. 5, 2018 | Mark J. Rood, BCEEM, FAEESP, FAWMA |
| 12:00 p.m. | AAEES 2018 Kappe Lecturer |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Ivan Racheff Professor of Environmental Engineering |
| Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering | |
| University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign |
| Sept. 28, 2018 | Le Wang, PhD |
| 12:00 p.m. | Professor |
| 223 Jarvis Hall | Department of Geography |
| University at Buffalo |
| November 3, 2017 | Josh Feldmann, Chief, Operation Branch David Schulenberg, Chief, Planning Branch Andrew Hannes |
| 12:15 p.m. | U.S. Army Corps of Engineers |
| October 27, 2017 | Ali Farhadzadeh, PhD, PE |
| 12:15 p.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Civil Engineering | |
| Stony Brook University |
| October 20, 2017 | Dr. Callie Babbitt |
| 12:15 p.m. | Associate Professor |
| Golisano Institute for Sustainability | |
| Rochester Institute of Technology | |
| Seminar Page | Resource and waste implications of evolving product ecosystems |
| October 13, 2017 | Dr. Beth L. Parker |
| 12:15 p.m. | Professor, School of Engineering |
| Director, G360 Institute for Groundwater Research | |
| College of Engineering & Physical Sciences | |
| University of Guelph |
| October 6, 2017 | Hongyi Li, PhD |
| 12:15 p.m. | Associate Professor |
| Land Resources and ENvironmental Sciences | |
| Montana State University |
| September 21, 2017 | Louis Licht, PhD, PE |
| 3:30 p.m. | President & CEO |
| Ecolotree Inc. |
| September 8, 2017 | John D. Sivey, PhD |
| 12:15 p.m. | Risher Endowed Professor of Chemistry |
| Towson University |
| April 14, 2017 | Kamelia Atefi Monfared, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering | |
| University at Buffalo | |
| Seminar Page | Geo-environmental implications of underground fluid injection operations |
| April 7, 2017 | Ali Farhadzadeh, PhD, PE |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor, Civil Engineering |
| Stony Brook University | |
| Seminar Page | Lake Erie's storms, seiches and hydrokinetic renewable energy |
| March 31, 2017 | Eleni Kyriakidou, PhD |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor, Chemical and |
| Biological Engineering | |
| University at Buffalo | |
| Seminar Page | Rational design of catalytic and hydrocarbon materials to meet automotive emissions regulations |
| March 10, 2017 | Damian E. Helbling, PhD, PE |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor, School of Civil and |
| Environmental Engineering | |
| Cornell University | |
| Seminar Page | Organic chemical contaminants in the aquatic environment: New tools for the characterization and remediation of impacted environments |
| March 6, 2017 | Dr. Kang Sun |
| 10:00 a.m. | Postdoctoral Research Fellow |
| Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics | |
| Seminar Page | Tackle grand environmental challenges through atmospheric observations and modeling |
| March 3, 2017 | Dr. Paula Mouser |
| 11:00 a.m. | Assistant Professor |
| Civil, Environmental and Geodetic Engineering | |
| Ohio State University | |
| Seminar Page | From the land down under: Environmental bioprocesses in the engineered shale system |
| February 22, 2017 | Dr. Sara Haig |
| 11:00 a.m. | Postdoctoral Research Fellow, |
| Civil and Environmentail Engineering/ Pediatrics | |
| University of Michigan |
| February 20, 2017 | Ian Bradley |
| 11:00 a.m. | PhD Candidate, Environmental Engineering |
| University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign |