(bright orchestral music)

- Hello, and thank you for tuning in

to "Connections and Directions,"

our University of Michigan's

Civil and Environmental
Engineering podcast.

My name is Michele Santillan

and I am the CEE Marketing
Communications specialist

and host of this series.

During our podcast, we
are featuring members

of our CEE community

and how their work reflects our mission

of engineers in service to society.

We will be highlighting
our strategic directions,

and our commitment to diversity,
equity, and inclusion.

CEE's five strategic directions

are Human Habitat Experience,

Shaping Resource Flows,

Adaptation,

Automation,

and Smart Infrastructure Finance.

I'm here with Eva Albalghiti,

who is a third year PhD student

in environmental engineering.

And Eva will be discussing
today her research

and how it fits in to
CEE's strategic directions.

Thank you for joining us.

- Thank you so much for having me.

This is so exciting.

I'm really looking forward to it.

- What specifically are you studying

in environmental engineering?

- Good question. (laughs)

So I work with Professor Brian Ellis,

who broadly has a research interest

in the capture and sequestration of CO2

in a variety of technologies

that benefits society and people.

So he's got some work on cement.

He's got some work on
using CO2 as a resource

for recovery of metals and
decontamination of water.

And he also has a really strong interest

in CO2 in the subsurface.

So subsurface is anything
that's underground.

Anything that you can't see,

gets pretty hot and pretty
high pressure down there.

So lots of interesting
chemical and physical processes

can shape what happens when
you put something down there

that wasn't there before.

So I broadly study how can we make sure

that we can do these technologies safely?

If I wanna store CO2 underground,

if I want to use it for some other purpose

like energy generation or energy storage,

how can I make sure that it's safe,

that we understand what's gonna happen

and that it actually works?

And that ends up being pretty complicated.

So I really only study teeny tiny aspects

of each of those problems,
but it's all about building

the skills and getting some practice.

- So in highlighting your research

how do you and other
students see yourselves

fitting into CEE strategic directions,

specifically with what you're studying?

- Oh yeah.

So I would say the first
thing that I noticed

about CEE when I got here was
that when you ask students

and actually postdocs, faculty, anybody

what they're researching,

you tend to get a different kind of answer

than what you might get when you wander

into a random engineering department

and start interrogating people.

Generally, people here like
to frame their research

in terms of the problems
that they are trying to solve

rather than the specific technologies

or scientific processes that
they're gaining expertise in.

So if I had to explain the
expertise that I'm building,

I would say, oh, you know,

chemistry and physics and the subsurface,

I would say throw out some
more complicated terms

like reactive transport modeling

or high pressure flow through experiments,

and probably your average
person would tune out

and walk away, and they'd be
right to do that. (laughs)

And instead, I've learned
pretty quickly to try

and figure out where my research fits

into the broader goals of the department

and of the field of civil and
environmental engineering,

which is evolving and changing
in a really exciting way.

So I think a lot of the people in CCE,

we could be doing the research we're doing

in different fields.

We could be chemical engineers,

materials scientists,
electrical engineers.

There's no one specific
discipline or area of expertise

that you can say, yeah, that's CEE,

that's what CEE is about.

Rather, it's about sort
of bringing together

the tools and the expertise that you need

to solve a problem that is civil
or environmental in nature.

And so we have people who say,

"Oh, I'm, I'm working
on safe drinking water,

I'm working on CO2 sequestration,

I'm working on climate
resilient infrastructure.

And that's how they introduce themselves

and how they introduce
the work that they do.

And I just think that's a
really cool aspect of being here

because it's clear that
everybody from the students

to all the way up through
the most senior professors

are here for a specific reason,

and that is solving problems.

- So taking that leap
from solving problems

to our mission of engineers
in service to society,

how does that resonate with you?

- I think about this phrase a lot.

I think it's a really
good sort of way to sum up

what we are trying to do as a department

because it is directly
in response to something

that has been, I think a very
long-standing misconception

or misframing of what engineering is about

that has held the field
back for quite some time.

So I mean, I think a lot of
people who are in engineering

historically tended to see themselves

or were pressured to see themselves

as doing work that is in a vacuum,

and is isolated from quote
unquote social problems.

So it would be a pretty
common way to think about it

would be I do quantitative work,

I do experimental work, I do modeling,

and it's about getting this sort of pure

scientific knowledge.

And I can't be asked to consider

how this might impact society

or how this has historically
been shaped by social forces.

And so I think engineers
in service to society,

this phrase is powerful
because it calls out

the need to do just that.

This is sort of what is necessary

for the field to survive and thrive.

We have now realized that this
way of framing our problems

as independent from society
is not going to work

and it's not going to
generate very rigorous

or very interesting research.

And I think this is gonna end up being

kind of a long form an
answer to this question,

but I think that civil and
environmental engineers

are uniquely equipped

to sort of lead the charge in doing that

for some other reasons
that we just talked about.

I mean, if I can just give an example

from my own work, it's...

(bright orchestral music)

- Hello and thank you for tuning in

to "Connections and Directions,"

our University of Michigan's

Civil and Environmental
Engineering podcast.

My name is Michele Santillan,

and I am the CEE Marketing
Communications Specialist

and host of this series.

During our podcast, we
are featuring members

of our CEE community

and how their work reflects our mission

of engineers in service to society.

We will be highlighting
our strategic directions

and our commitment to diversity,
equity, and inclusion.

CES's five strategic directions

are Human Habitat Experience,

Shaping Resource Flows,

Adaptation,

Automation,

and Smart Infrastructure Finance.

I'm here with Eva Albalghiti,

who is a third year PhD student

in environmental engineering.

And Eva will be discussing
today her research

and how it fits in to
CES's strategic directions.

Thank you for joining us.

- Thank you so much for having me.

This is so exciting.

I'm really looking forward to it.

- What specifically are you studying

in environmental engineering?

- Good question. (laughs)

So I work with Professor Brian Ellis,

who broadly has a research interest

in the capture and sequestration of CO2

in a variety of technologies

that benefits society and people.

So he's got some work on cement.

He's got some work on
using CO2 as a resource

for recovery of metals and
decontamination of water.

And he also has a really strong interest

in CO2 in the subsurface.

So subsurface is anything
that's underground.

Anything that you can't see,

gets pretty hot and pretty
high pressure down there.

So lots of interesting
chemical and physical processes

can shape what happens when
you put something down there

that wasn't there before.

So I broadly study how can we make sure

that we can do these technologies safely?

If I wanna store CO2 underground,

if I want to use it for some other purpose

like energy generation or energy storage,

how can I make sure that it's safe,

that we understand what's gonna happen

and that it actually works?

And that ends up being pretty complicated.

So I really only study teeny tiny aspects

of each of those problems,
but it's all about building

the skills and getting some practice.

- So in highlighting your research

how do you and other
students see yourselves

fitting into CEE strategic directions,

specifically with what you're studying?

- Oh yeah.

So I would say the first
thing that I noticed

about CEE when I got here was
that when you ask students

and actually postdocs, faculty, anybody

what they're researching,

you tend to get a different kind of answer

than what you might get when you wander

into a random engineering department

and start interrogating people.

Generally, people here like
to frame their research

in terms of the problems
that they are trying to solve

rather than the specific technologies

or scientific processes that
they're gaining expertise in.

So if I had to explain the
expertise that I'm building,

I would say, oh, you know,

chemistry and physics and the subsurface,

I would say throw out some
more complicated terms

like reactive transport modeling

or high pressure flow through experiments,

and probably your average
person would tune out

and walk away, and they'd be
right to do that. (laughs)

And instead, I've learned
pretty quickly to try

and figure out where my research fits

into the broader goals of the department

and of the field of civil and
environmental engineering,

which is evolving and changing
in a really exciting way.

So I think a lot of the people in CEE,

we could be doing the research we're doing

in different fields.

We could be chemical engineers,

materials scientists,
electrical engineers.

There's no one specific
discipline or area of expertise

that you can say, yeah, that's CEE,

that's what CEE is about.

Rather, it's about sort
of bringing together

the tools and the expertise that you need

to solve a problem that is civil
or environmental in nature.

And so we have people who say,

"Oh, I'm, I'm working
on safe drinking water,

I'm working on CO2 sequestration,

I'm working on climate
resilient infrastructure.

And that's how they introduce themselves

and how they introduce
the work that they do.

And I just think that's a
really cool aspect of being here

because it's clear that
everybody from the students

to all the way up through
the most senior professors

are here for a specific reason,

and that is solving problems.

- So taking that leap
from solving problems

to our mission of engineers
in service to society,

how does that resonate with you?

- I think about this phrase a lot.

I think it's a really
good sort of way to sum up

what we are trying to do as a department

because it is directly
in response to something

that has been, I think a very
long standing misconception

or misframing of what engineering is about

that has held the field
back for quite some time.

So I mean, I think a lot of
people who are in engineering

historically tended to see themselves

or were pressured to see themselves

as doing work that is in a vacuum,

and is isolated from quote
unquote social problems.

So it would be a pretty
common way to think about it

would be I do quantitative work,

I do experimental work, I do modeling,

and it's about getting this sort of pure

scientific knowledge.

And I can't be asked to consider

how this might impact society

or how this has historically
been shaped by social forces.

And so I think engineers
in service to society,

this phrase is powerful
because it calls out

the need to do just that.

This is sort of what is necessary

for the field to survive and thrive.

We have now realized that this
way of framing our problems

as independent from society
is not going to work

and it's not going to
generate very rigorous

or very interesting research.

And I think this is gonna end up being

kind of a long form an
answer to this question,

but I think that civil and
environmental engineers

are uniquely equipped

to sort of lead the charge in doing that

for some other reasons
that we just talked about.

I mean, if I can just give an example

from my own work, it's in trying to create

a CO2 sequestration system
underground that harvests energy.

Okay, that sounds really
high tech, really cool

that's exciting, but a lot
of people have to be involved

to make that happen.

We might handle sort of the
chemistry side of things,

the basic science.

We also collaborate with economists,

we also collaborate with people

who are experts in infrastructure.

So if you sit in on one of our meetings,

it's like somebody says,
"Okay, well the place

the CO2 comes from is gonna determine

the sustainability of this.

So we need to think about that."

Then somebody jumps in
from another team and says

"Oh well this tax credit's going away,

so that's going to be really important

for our economic model."

And then I'm on the other end
of the phone line and saying,

"Oh, well I need to make sure

that I can see all the
teeny tiny holes in the rock

because that's gonna
determine the chemistry."

And it sounds really
chaotic when it's happening,

but this is how we need to
approach these problems,

'cause they are really big
and really complicated.

And so I think that old formulation of,

well my work is is pure and my work

needs to be kept separate
from sort of other areas,

including social areas.

Actually what a lot

of people meant when
they were saying that is,

well I don't have all
the expertise that I need

to solve this by myself.

And so now we know that the answer to that

is you need to work with others,

and we need to make sure that we have

all of this perspectives that
we need to do a good job.

- And kind of looking at
CEE's strategic directions,

things like shaping resource flows

and human habitat experience

that does involve that broader view

and that broader input that's required

to make change happen.

If you had to say that there
was a strategic direction

or directions that work most closely

with what you are doing, which
one of those would that be?

Or which couple of those would those be?

- I was on that website for a little while

trying to think about this
in relation to myself,

because it can be really
hard to figure out,

all right, which of these boxes

do I want to say that I belong to?

And then I kind of realized

that's actually not the point.

Some of the intelligence

of how these strategic
directions have been designed

is that if you look at them,

you realize that they
all depend on each other.

That's the first thing.

You can't have adaptation
without automation.

You can't have automation without finance.

The more you look at it

it's just going in a big circle.

And that's by design because no civil

or environmental engineering problem

can be conceived of in a vacuum.

So instead how I try to frame it is,

okay what are the skills
that I bring to the table?

What is my expertise?

And so where can I
contribute in sort of this

like little cycle of
missions that we have?

So I would say that I
probably fit the most

into shaping resource flows
and adaptation with my research

simply because my
research tends to involve

sort of material and chemical cycling,

and sort of understanding
how natural conditions

in the environment which vary a lot

and are really complicated,

how they affect sort of
the material realities

that we're concerned with,

whether it's CO2 in the
atmosphere versus underground,

whether it's the chemistry of the water

and how that relates to its safety.

That's sort of where my little niche

scientifically enables me to fit in.

- And then as you said,
everything is sort of intertwined

and woven together.

And with that in our department,

DEI is something very important.

And how do you see DEI coming through

in the work that you do

and what you've experienced in
the department as a student?

- Definitely.

So I am involved with the DEI committee

and several of the people
that I've become closest to

professionally and
personally are also involved

either formally or informally.

I would say that it's
something that permeates

department culture quite
a bit at this point.

I believe it's a pretty recent initiative,

sort of the revitalization
of DEI happened as a result

of students and postdocs
writing an open letter

and talking about how
they would like to see

resources allocated
towards the DEI mission.

And I think that that's an
important piece of history

because it helps us to understand

how our DEI committee works,

maybe in relation to how we might imagine

a typical DEI committee works.

I think that it's really important

that it's everything
that we do is a product

of collaboration between
students, faculty,

staff, collaborators.

This couldn't happen without
this ecosystem of people

who all have different perspectives

and different expertise
sort of working together.

And so how I see our DEI committee

as kind of like a a resource hub

for consolidating
information and resources

and putting them towards projects

that are beginning to mature

in the minds of students
or faculty or staff.

And that's been really
exciting to be a part of.

And I know that we're
just getting started.

So I'm really excited for basically how

we're bringing in scholars from elsewhere

with our seminar program.

I'm really excited for
the work that we're doing

with recruitment and retention

to try and sort of fix these
long-standing systemic issues

and how people are recruited

and how their careers are resourced

and invested into different degrees.

I think that those have a lot
of potential to sort of shape

the long-term research agenda

and teaching quality in our department.

And I'm also just speaking of teaching,

and because this is a project
that I'm pretty close to,

I'm really excited about our collaboration

with the Center for
Socially Engaged Designs.

We're working on basically making justice

and equity environmental racism training

a more integral part of our
undergraduate curriculum,

which I think is hugely important for CEE.

A lot of curriculums are very lacking

in that kind of training.

And as we've already discussed,

there's no way to separate
the technical work we do

from those problems.

They're all one and the same.

- Can you tell me a little bit more

about the training that
you're talking about?

- Yeah, definitely.

So I'm participating in a
project that's a collaboration

between CEE DEI and CSED,

which is the Center for
Socially Engaged Design

which is a resource that
is available to everyone

across the College of Engineering

and is focused on leveraging the expertise

that the CSED people have

towards helping us develop case studies

that will be incorporated
into CEE classes.

So we have had many
different faculty members

from different disciplines
interested in this program,

and essentially each of the students

in postdocs who are involved
with the project are assigned

to one of these faculty members.

We have several very
knowledgeable facilitators

from CSED working with us

to essentially research the
problems that they study

in their classes as well
as their teaching style

and how they currently incorporate

some of these social concerns.

And basically write a
couple of case studies

where we can look at
either a historical case

or an ongoing environmental problem

that relates to that class,

and we can actually start to pick apart

what are the social
economic racial dimensions

that created this problem,

and how has the work of
engineers so far engaged with

or failed to engage with those factors?

So it's in the very early stages.

We've only had a couple
of meetings so far,

but I'm just really
excited for this sort of...