News

3 Questions: Can disused croplands help mitigate climate change?

May 19, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

Assistant Professor César Terrer and recent visiting student Stephen Bell describe how agricultural lands that are no longer productive could play an important role in carbon sequestration. […]

Shailey Patel sitting in a grassy field holding a bouquet of yellow tulips.

Graduate Spotlight: Shailey Patel

May 19, 2023 | Graduate Spotlight | CEE Chief Editor

Hometown: Saddle Brook, NJ Advisor/PI: John Ochsendorf Degree Program: MEng – Structural Anticipated Graduation Year: 2023 How did you first become interested in Civil and Environmental Engineering? I found my way to structural engineering through my […]

J-WAFS announces 2023 seed grant recipients

May 17, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

Fifteen principal investigators from across MIT will conduct early work to solve issues ranging from water contamination to aquaculture monitoring and management. […]

Collage of headshots of Benedetto Marelli (left), Tal Cohen (center), Serguei Saavedra (right).

Three faculty members granted tenure

May 15, 2023 | News | Callie Ayoub

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is pleased to announce the following faculty members have been granted tenure by MIT: Benedetto Marelli was promoted to the rank of Associate Professor with Tenure effective July 1. […]

Like ancient mariners, ancestors of Prochlorococcus microbes rode out to sea on exoskeleton particles

May 11, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

A new study shows the carbon-capturing phytoplankton colonized the ocean by rafting on particles of chitin. […]

MIT Professor David Des Marais receives NSF CAREER Award

May 11, 2023 | News | Callie Ayoub

The award will support fundamental environmental research into ecological and agricultural resilience David Des Marais, the Cecil & Ida Green Career Development Professor and Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at MIT, has been selected […]

US and UAE governments highlight early warning system for climate resilience

May 8, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

One of MIT’s five Climate Grand Challenges flagship projects, the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet project will pilot in Bangladesh and Sudan to help communities adapt to the impacts of climate change. […]

MIT Civil and Environmental Engineering students awarded NSF Graduate Research Fellowships

May 3, 2023 | News | Stephanie Martinovich

Two graduate students in the MIT Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering were named fellows of the prestigious 2023 National Science Graduate Research Fellowship Program. Kirby Heck PhD ‘26 and Elijah Martin PhD ‘26 were among […]

Deep-learning system explores materials’ interiors from the outside

April 28, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

A new method could provide detailed information about internal structures, voids, and cracks, based solely on data about exterior conditions. […]

3 Questions: New MIT major and its role in fighting climate change

April 20, 2023 | MIT News | Stephanie Martinovich

Ali Jadbabaie and Robert van der Hilst discuss how a new joint degree program in climate system science and engineering will prepare students to solve global-scale environmental problems. […]

AI system can generate novel proteins that meet structural design targets

April 20, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

These tunable proteins could be used to create new materials with specific mechanical properties, like toughness or flexibility. […]

Podcast: Curiosity Unbounded, Episode 1 — How a free-range kid from Maine is helping green-up industrial practices

April 19, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

President Sally Kornbluth talks with Associate Professor Desirée Plata about her research — and what she wishes students knew about their professors. […]

MIT Professor Cathy Wu receives NSF CAREER Award

April 18, 2023 | News | Callie Ayoub

The award will support the advancement of large-scale cyber-physical systems Cathy Wu has received a Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF), its most prestigious honor for junior faculty members, for […]

MIT PhD students honored for their work to solve critical issues in water and food

April 13, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

Gokul Sampath and Jie Yun have been named 2023-24 J-WAFS Fellows. […]

Scientists track evolution of microbes on the skin’s surface

April 12, 2023 | MIT News | CEE Chief Editor

A new analysis reveals how Staphylococcus aureus gains mutations that allow it to colonize eczema patches. […]