Environmental Sciences and Engineering News
MacDonald Gibson receives NSF award to study interdependency of drinking water and health systems
September 23, 2018
Dr. Jacqueline MacDonald Gibson has received a four-year grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to examine ways that public water infrastructure can be modified to better protect people during water-related natural and human-caused disasters. Photo by Ben Gordon.
Keil and Fry awarded NIH grant to study relationship of toxic metals in private wells with birth defects
September 13, 2018
Drs. Alexander Keil and Rebecca Fry are co-principal and principal investigators, respectively, for a new $1.4 million award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The researchers will examine the impact of environmental exposure to metals found in well water upon birth defects and will identify priorities for reducing well water exposures. Photo by Matthew Reid.
Student startup to combat global warming with seaweed
September 13, 2018
UNC undergraduates Lucy Best, Emily Kian and Eliza Harrison (an ESE student) make up team Phyta, a seaweed cultivation initiative hoping to win the prestigious Hult Prize.
Styblo, Fry awarded NIH grant to examine impact of pre- and postnatal exposure to arsenic on diabetes
September 8, 2018
Drs. Mirek Styblo and Rebecca Fry were awarded more than $2.2 million by the National Institutes of Health to study diabetes associated with exposure to arsenic, a common drinking water and food contaminant. Photo by Paul Istoan.
Fry and O’Shea awarded $20.5M NIH grant to study environment and children’s health
September 7, 2019
Dr. Rebecca Fry will continue a collaboration with Dr. Michael O’Shea at the UNC School of Medicine to study environmental impacts upon children’s health. The researchers were awarded more than $20 million to continue the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program.
Gillings School notes the passing of alumnus and friend Chen-Yu Yen
August 28, 2018
Dr. Chen-Yu Yen,1983 alumnus of the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and member of the School’s Public Health Foundation board, died on Aug. 21.
NC appropriates $5M for multi-university study of GenX; Surratt to serve as lead investigator
July 30, 2018
The N.C. Policy Collaboratory has received a $5 million appropriation from the N.C. General Assembly to support water quality testing for a set of chemicals including GenX, a potentially toxic industrial compound that has been detected in the Cape Fear River. The Gillings School will manage the study, and Dr. Jason Surratt will serve as lead investigator. Graphic courtesy of The Intercept.
Students win American Water Works Association scholarships
July 3, 2018
ESE students Alexander Gorzalski and Hemali Oza were presented with financial awards from the American Water Works Association at the association’s annual meeting on June 13.
Characklis honored by ASCE for service to the environmental engineering profession
June 19, 2018
Dr. Greg Characklis recently was presented with the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Environment and Water Resources Institute’s Service to the Profession Award for his contributions to environmental and water resource systems engineering.
ESE doctoral student selected for Boren Fellowship
June 15, 2018
Doctoral student Elizabeth Christenson has been awarded a Boren Fellowship to study critical languages abroad. She will be UNC-Chapel Hill’s 13th Boren fellow since 2000.