The Civil and Construction Engineering department has recently launched the new Sustainability Lab (Sept 2021). The Sustainability Lab is housed in the CCE department, but is consciously an interdisciplinary research lab, designed to address some of society’s complex challenges at the intersection of the built environment, natural environment, and human-social environment.
In late October the Sustainability Lab hosted its first open house with games, pizza, and most importantly discussion on current and future research projects supported by the lab.
Dr’s Andrew South, Rob Sowby, and Clifton Farnsworth are the lab research directors. Undergraduate student Jacob Neil (sophomore-CCE) currently serves as the lab manager.
The CCE sustainability lab, together with the Romney Institute's public service lab, have organized a series of roundtable discussions related to sustainability. A team of over 35 faculty and students from across the university have been invited to identify current efforts and new collaborations in research and teaching a unique BYU perspective on sustainability. Discussions are hosted by a diverse set of research centers and academic initiatives at BYU, including the Kennedy Center’s Environmental Ethics Initiative, the Ballard Center for Social Impact, and BYU’s office of Sustainability. Civil and construction engineering professionals operate at the crossroads between the natural environment, built environment, and social environment, often in leadership positions for sustainability. The CCE department and Sustainabilty Lab look for ways to elevate and prepare professionals for these roles.
Anyone interested in the lab and its work are invited to go to sustainabilitylab.byu.edu.
