Clarkson’s Institute for a Sustainable Environment is a hub for integrated research in healthy world solutions across Clarkson’s schools and research centers.

These include the world-class analytical capabilities in our CARES facility, material-based research with industrial partners through CAMP and modeling and computational approaches through the Clarkson Center for Complex System Science (C3S2). Our geographic location provides opportunities for research focused on the Great Lakes, Adirondack Park and great rivers (St. Lawrence and Hudson).

ISE faculty affiliates work with graduate and undergraduate students to conduct environmental, energy and sustainability related research. Many of these students are in ISE interdisciplinary degree programs, others are pursuing a traditional disciplinary degree. Undergraduate researchers from all over the country participate in Clarkson’s long-running NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduate (REU) program in Environmental Science and Engineering.

Current Areas of Research

Clean Air

Understanding, monitoring and reducing air pollutants to benefit public health 
Goodarz Ahmadi 
Suresh Dhaniyala 
Sujan Fernando 
Andrea Ferro 
Tom Holsen 
Alan Rossner

Clean Energy

Technical, business and social consideration for sustainable and 
resilient power systems and energy infrastructure 
Bebonchu Atems 
Stephen Bird 
Jan DeWaters 
Daqing Hou 
Lisa Legault 
Jie Li 
Marcias Martinez 
Amir Mousavian 
Tom Ortmeyer 
Susan Powers 
Ken Visser

Advanced Materials

Developing methods for environmental sensing and treatment 
Silvana Andreescu 
Ruth Baltus 
Devon Shipp 
Shantanu Sur 
Mario Wriedt

Circular Economy

Recovering value from waste products 
Stefan Grimberg 
Santosh Mahapatra 
Marcias Martinez 
Sulapha Peethamparan 
Susan Powers

Clean Water

Managing and treating water resources for health drinking water,
healthy ecosystems and sustainable food systems
Silvana Andreescu
Michelle Crimi
Stefan Grimberg
Tom Holsen
Kathleen Kavanagh
Jennifer Knack
Alex Lee
Selma Mededovic Thagard
Shane Rogers
Hayley Shen
Hung Tao Shen
Joe Skufca
Tyler Smith
Michael Twiss
Weiming Wu
Diana White

Healthy Ecosystems

Assessment, analysis and valuation of biodiversity and ecosystem services
Andrew David
Alex French
Stefanie Kring
Tom Langen
Augustine Lado
Chris Martin
Michael Twiss
Diana White

Healthy Planet

Modeling and analysis of earth systems
Goodarz Ahmadi
Erik Bollt
Marko Budisic
Brian Helenbrook
Sumona Mondal
Joe Skufca

Sustainable and Resilient Communities

Bebonchu Atems
Erik Backus
Stephen Bird
Alex French
Susan Powers
Christopher Robinson
JoAnn Rogers
Annegret Staiger
Weiming Wu

Resources and Facilities

  • The Center for Air Resources Science and Engineering (CARES) facility has analytical facilities that houses world-class major instruments for sample analysis, as well as field instrumentation, a computer cluster, wind tunnels, experimental chambers, a clean room and laboratory space specifically designed to support air resources research. This facility is supported by a lab manager to help coordinate equipment needs and train users.
  • Clarkson processes its pre-consumer food waste in a two stage anaerobic digester that is also used for research. A second digester at the Cornell Cooperative Extension farm in Canton, N.Y., which is used for small scale agricultural waste, extends the research capacity to advance understanding and implementation of digestion systems.
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