While ostensibly an issue of personal and public health, the pandemic's impact on all facets of life necessitates a broadly interdisciplinary approach to combating the disease, mitigating its economic impacts, and building a more resilient world against future threats. Learn about the research Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northeastern is conducting into COVID-19.
COVID-19 Research in Civil and Environmental Engineering
With a strategic focus on urban engineering, Northeastern’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is at the forefront of interdisciplinary research and education in the evolving fields of environmental health, civil infrastructure security, and sustainable resource engineering.
Research Thrusts
Snell Professor and Associate Dean for Research Akram Alshawabkeh was awarded $13.2M from the NIH for the multi-institutional and interdisciplinary research project for environmental influences of child health outcomes in Puerto Rico.
Environmental Health
Yujie Yan, PhD student, focuses research on developing autonomous unmanned aerial systems to conduct routine inspection and post-disaster assessment of infrastructure.
Civil Infrastructure Security
Professor Auroop Ganguly, director of the Sustainability and Data Sciences Laboratory, uses technologies such as artificial intelligence and deep machine learning to enhance climate science understanding and inform policy.
Sustainable Resource Engineering
Our students are engaged in critical engineering challenges, both locally and globally. From Engineers Without Borders to the American Society of Civil Engineers—there is something for everyone to have fun while expanding your knowledge.
CommunitySpotlight Stories
NSF CAREER Award to Improve Home Thermal Automation
Assistant Professor Michael Kane, civil and environmental engineering, recently received the National Science Foundation CAREER Award. The project will enable the design of automation in the built environment that models human physiological and behavioral responses to changing environmental temperature conditions to satisfy competing objectives of energy management and occupant comfort.
Engineering in Action
World-Renowned Cooperative Education
Te’Erica Eason is pursuing a BS in Environmental Engineering. She is also on the varsity basketball team and an e-board member of the New England Water and Environmental Association. She says co-op is her guiding light and so far worked at WSP USA on hydropower. She hopes to open her own business in water distribution systems in undeveloped rural areas when she graduates.
World-Renowned Cooperative Education
Jude Arbogast, BS, Civil Engineering, has done two co-ops at Suffolk Construction—one in scheduling and staffing, and the other in the field where he found his love of construction management. He says co-op allowed him to put his knowledge to the test and find out what he really wanted to do.
Recent News
Just What the Doctor Ordered
Human beings are some of the most complex systems in the world, and responses to illness, disease, and impairments manifest in countless different ways. When it comes to making sure that your system stays up and running, healthcare professionals typically have their own deep well of knowledge—but the addition of artificial intelligence tools offers unprecedented […]
COVID-19: Students Making a Difference
Over the past year-plus College of Engineering students have come to the cause, transitioning research, co-op experiences, and community efforts to address challenges caused by the pandemic. Here are just a few highlights of their contributions. This article originally appeared in Engineering @ Northeastern magazine, Spring 2021. One week after the pandemic forced him to […]
Engaging Research from the Start
Curiosity and engagement are top traits of high-potential talented students. To tap into and nurture this excitement, the College of Engineering introduced an innovative program in Fall 2020: Undergraduate Program for Leaders In Future Transformation (UPLIFT). UPLIFT Scholars are paired with a faculty mentor and work in their mentor’s lab conducting research starting their first semester of their first year of study at Northeastern. By targeting research in the fall, a directed study (general elective) in the spring, a Research Experiences for Undergraduates in the summer, and additional experiences thereafter, scholars become competitively positioned for graduate work, national scholarships, and other accolades. Scholars also receive programming and community building opportunities through Northeastern’s Center for STEM Education.
2021 COE Co-op Awardees
The COE Departmental Co-op Team was proud to mark the 8th Annual COE Co-op Awards virtually with our recipients this year. These awards celebrate the exemplary work of a select group of undergraduate and graduate students who have shown great promise and intellectual fortitude throughout their co-op experience. This year’s recipients are: Julia Spada, Bioengineering […]