Dr. Kelly Sanders, Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, discusses her whirlwind year working at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) as the assistant director for energy systems innovation.

Dr. Adam Simpson, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at USC CEE, talks to us about his research into the formation of toxic contaminants caused by food processing techniques such as food disinfection through chlorine use. (Also known more commonly as ready-to-eat packaged vegetables that undergo “triple washing.”)

Dr. Jiachen Zhang, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at USC CEE, talks to us about her research in air pollution, climate change, and environmental justice.

Ever wondered about what a transportation engineer does? In this episode, we hear from Christine Stavish, a recent graduate of our MSCE Transportation Engineering program. She tells us about her "AHA!" moment when she realized transportation engineering was her passion and what role other students played in helping her pursue her interests.

Curious about what structural engineering is? Do you wonder what it would look like if you pursued a career as a structural engineer? Hear from Dr. Farzad Naeim, the Director of the Structural Engineering program at USC CEE, about why he thinks our program is unique.

Curious about what environmental engineering is? Do you wonder what it would look like if you pursued a career as an environmental engineer? Hear from Dr. Amy Childress, the Environmental Engineering Program director, and Pooja Sinha, a USC graduate currently working as an environmental engineer at Stantec!

Despite the current effort to recycle and reuse plastics, most still ends up in the landfill. Dr. Wang and PhD student Yanchu Zhang are researching ways to alter the properties of plastics to upcycle the waste!

NOTE: We faced technical difficulties during the recording of this episode and apologize for the static and poor audio. This is something we are working to resolve in future episodes. N.E.S.T. lab's assistant professor Dr. Buka Nweke and doctoral student Piyush Vyas discuss their budding project in turning sand into sandstone with the goal of replacing the need for concrete.

Mohamad Awada, a 4th year PhD student and chair of the Astani Research Symposium, and Patrick Rodrigues, a 3rd year PhD student and programming chair of the Astani Research Symposium discuss the planning and execution of the inaugural event this past September.

Have computational skills? Apply them to civil engineering! Dr. Lucio Soibelman, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Dr. Meida Chen, one of his graduated students, discuss the applications of machine learning and 3D visualization in their work. Additionally, they offer insight on the PhD experience and I-Lab's family atmosphere.

It's getting hot out there! Dr. Kelly Sanders, Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and her Ph.D. student, Stepp Mayer, discuss the benefits of pre-cooling your home – both for the environment and for your wallet. They give insights into the life and work of an environmental researcher at the intersection of energy, water, power and policy and the interdisciplinary work inside the dynamic Sanders Sustainable Systems Group.

Daniel McCurry, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, and Isabel Bluml, a senior studying environmental engineering and a member of Dr. McCurry's lab, talk about their work to transform wastewater into drinking water for drought-stricken California. They also discuss what drew them into the field and what motivates their work during #EarthWeek.