PhD student Stephanie Chute-Ibsen is trying to find a better way to monitor land that has been damaged by industry, and they think soil invertebrates hold the key — By Riley Tjosvold Some say that space is the final frontier, but for Stephanie Chute-Ibsen (pronouns: they/them), the most mysterious part of the universe is right under our feet. A PhD student in land reclamation and remediation, Chute-Ibsen has been fascinated by hidden worlds since childhood, when they remember begging…

Researchers in Mustafa Gül’s lab in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering are using smart phones and cameras to assess the health of built environments — By Riley Tjosvold If bridges could speak, what would they say? Dr. Mustafa Gül, an associate professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, thinks he might have the answer. He has found a cheap, simple and efficient way to “listen” to bridges and detect whether they need repair…

Sustainability Scholar Alumni Sitara Fernandes says that her surplus food redistribution research project set her on an unexpected career path — By Riley Tjosvold A fresh graduate of St. Joseph’s College of Commerce in Bangalore, India, Sitara Fernandes noticed a problem at her new, corporate workplace. Indian tech companies often provide lunch to their employees, but leftovers at Fernandes’s job were being thrown out at the end of the day. So…

PhD students in Omid Ardakanian’s lab are wrestling with making our buildings more energy efficient — and with the privacy concerns that arise from this mission — By Riley Tjosvold This is one of two stories about research happening in Omid Ardakanian’s lab in the Department of Computing Science. Read the first story to learn how this research unit is paving the way for a transition to electric vehicles.

Environmental Science professor and beaver expert Glynnis Hood explains why humans and beavers should get along for the good of the natural environment — By Riley Tjosvold In her book, The Beaver Manifesto, Environmental Science professor and beaver expert Glynnis Hood describes falling into a hole excavated by a beaver, twisting her ankle, and then, supported by her dog, limping through canals, over logs and around flooded shorelines before arriving at the road near…

Getting wrapped up in Certificate in Sustainability graduate Emilia Housch’s “temperature quilt” — It might be warm and snuggly on the inside, but on the outside, this quilt is as cold as an Edmonton February. That’s because its colourful rectangular patterns are more than just a playful design: they’re a visualization of the high and low temperatures of each February day in Edmonton…

Industrial design instructor Ben King and his students explain how the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals inspire sustainable design projects — Students in Intermediate Industrial Design Principles and Practices II (DES 401) keep delivering projects that inspire communities to see new solutions to old sustainability problems. They prototyped concepts for a colour-coded sticker system to help customers find the proper bins for waste and recycling from Students Union Building restaurants. They…

Switching to electric vehicles will take massive infrastructure transformations. Omid Ardakanian and his students are helping to pave the road that gets us there. — At this year’s UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), a group of over 100 governments and vehicle manufacturers agreed to end the sale and construction of fossil-fuel burning cars by 2040. Canada has an even more ambitious vision to wheel these cars off of the sales lot by 2035.

Philosopher Nathan Kowalsky details his philosophy of “the bush” and asks why we value the natural environment — Politicians preach agendas for a greener future. Corporations advertise newer, more sustainable products, now in compostable packaging. Parents and teachers tell kids not to litter, not to leave the power on or the water running. It seems most of us believe that environmental stewardship is a good thing. But why…