Northwestern Sustainability Lecture Series to Explore Energy, Climate, and Urban Transformations

Designed to inform and inspire current and future leaders in sustainability, Northwestern University will host its inaugural Northwestern Sustainability Lecture Series, a day-long summit on Monday, October 31. Called “Earth-Human Interactions: Sustainability and Development,” the event will bring together sustainability leaders, students, and faculty to talk about critical challenges and advances related to energy, climate and the environment, and urban transformations. 

“I am thrilled to launch this event at Northwestern and create an occasion to reflect on urgent challenges and emerging innovations in sustainability,” said Alessandro Rotta Loria, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering and organizer of the event. “Our goal is to enrich the education of our undergraduate students while also providing an occasion for graduate students, researchers, faculty, and decision-makers within and outside Northwestern to learn about the latest advances in sustainability.”

Open to the public, participation in this hybrid event is free, but registration is required. The summit’s in-person proceedings will take place in the Norris University Center’s Louis Room on the Evanston Campus, while remote guests may view the talks on Zoom.

The event will feature six keynote talks from distinguished sustainability leaders from applied sciences, engineering, physical sciences, social sciences, and architecture. Topics will range from decarbonizing international shipping to sustainable geo-energies to mitigating urban climate heat waves.  

This year, the featured speakers at the event will be: 

• Jan Carmeliet, professor of building physics and director, Chair of Building Physics, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich 
• Lynn Loo, professor of chemical and biological engineering, Princeton University; chief executive officer, Global Center for Maritime Decarbonisation
• Lyesse Laloui, professor of geo-energy and geo-engineering and director, Civil Engineering Section, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne 
• Pamela Matson, professor of environmental studies, Stanford University
• Carlo Ratti, professor of urban technologies and planning and director, Senseable City Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Maureen E. Raymo, professor of earth and environmental sciences, Columbia University; cofounding dean, Columbia Climate School

The Northwestern Sustainability Lecture Series is an event created within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and sponsored by The Alumnae of Northwestern University, the Center for Engineering Sustainability and Resilience, and the Institute for Sustainability and Energy at Northwestern.