Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering
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  • 135 Dauer Drive
  • 166 Rosenau Hall, CB #7431
  • Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7431
  • (919) 966-1171
Healthy people, healthy planet

Our Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering focuses on the interface between people and the environment. Uniquely situated in a school of public health, our interdisciplinary programs in air quality and atmospheric processes, human exposure and health effects, safe and sustainable water resources, climate change and One Health draw from faculty expertise in the physical and life sciences, engineering and policy.

The official logo of ESE's centennial celebration

We’re Celebrating our Centennial!

Read about our students and alumni, watch student speed talks and special guest seminars on our Centennial Celebration page.

 

For information about returning to campus this fall, please visit the UNC Gillings Return to Campus Roadmap page.

Coronavirus Affects Everyone: The Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering Responds

Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering faculty members Rachel Noble, Jill Stewart and several others from NC State, UNC-Wilmington and UNC-Charlotte are identifying COVID-19 hot spots through wastewater surveillance across North Carolina. They are using a new testing tool for improved assessment of the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in North Carolina, with particular attention to rural water systems.

An illustration from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals the basic form of the virus blamed for the outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China.
Our research strengths include:

  • Characterizing exposures to contaminants in air, water, soil and workplaces
  • Developing engineering and policy solutions to environmental risks
  • Using molecular approaches to understanding diseases caused by toxic substances in the environment
  • Overcoming environmental health challenges in developing countries

Message from the Chair

Barbara Turpin, PhD
Professor and Chair
While I write this message, I am sheltering in place to help slow the spread of a deadly virus and writing interdisciplinary proposals to better understand its environmental transmission. This work is uniquely possible at a place like Gillings, where engineering, science and public health are found together, and where health equity has always been a central part of our mission.
Read more from Dr. Turpin.
Dr. Barbara Turpin

More Resources

Our Degrees

The Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health offers bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees with many interdisciplinary fields of study.
Students listen to a presentation.

Current Students

Departmental resources for current students are available here.
Students pose with fun props at the End of Year Social.

Alumni

Discover information about alumni news and events.
ESE alumni pose for a photo.

Our Research

The wide scope of departmental research is reflected in the three interdisciplinary fields of study, faculty’s areas of research, and affiliated labs and research institutes.
A woman performs research in a lab.

Master of Science in Environmental Engineering (MSEE)

Our one-year practice-based or two-year research-based Master of Science in Environmental Engineering (MSEE) program provides students with the vital skills and training in air quality and sustainable water resources.
The chamber is used for research and sits on top of the Gillings School.

Environmental Health Solutions Concentration (MPH)

The Environmental Health Solutions concentration will equip you with the skills and know-how to predict and identify environmental problems and mitigate their impacts on human health.
Windmills pictured in an open field.

Global Health Concentration (MPH)

The Global Health concentration will provide you with the knowledge and skills to advance the health and well-being of populations in diverse global settings.
Students toss an inflatable globe amongst themselves.

Health Equity, Social Justice and Human Rights Concentration (MPH)

This concentration will prepare you for positions in diverse areas of public health through training in quantitative, qualitative and community-engaged approaches in research and practice.
Suzanne Maman is pictured doing research in Tanzania.

Support ESE

Support the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering.
Hands hold water under a spout.

Student and Alumni Stories

We asked students and alumni to share stories about how their involvement in the program made an impact on their education and careers.
Students laugh together in the Atrium.