Past Events: Penn State Energy and Environment Calendar Archive

From understanding how the universe began and evolved, how it works, and whether there's life in other places, to understanding changes in our planet Earth and climate system, NASA leads teams worldwide through scientific discovery. Our mission is to encourage innovation, create positive impact on people’s lives, and also serve as a source of inspiration. The planet Earth is at a pivotal moment due to rapid changes.

The ability to accurately weigh and identify micro and nanoparticles, especially at low concentrations, holds significant importance in chemistry, biology, and environmental monitoring.  While recent advancements in optical technologies have enabled ultra-low concentrations measurement, surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices have yet to fully match the performance of their optical counterparts.  Nonetheless, SAW sensors offer distinct advantages such as low power consumption, ease of integration into lab-on-a-chip platforms, and the ability to be fabricated on flexible substrates with wireless

Chirality, ubiquitous in chemical and biological systems like DNA, exerts profound effects on the behavior of electrons and light, underscoring the indispensable role of quantum mechanics in elucidating these phenomena.

The Internet of things has exploded the use of sensors in our day-to-day lives. This presentation will discuss the use of sensor data across the environmental health paradigm from emission of pollutants to exposure to health effects. Ambient, occupational, and personal monitoring approaches will be discussed, along with interventions to reduce exposures, with a focus on air pollution exposures. Bio:

On Monday, April 1, from 3 pm – 8 pm, join the University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA) and Penn State Sustainability, along with many other student groups, as we work to make to Penn State a cleaner and greener university! Come learn more about Penn State’s progress towards being a more sustainable institution, as well as brainstorm opportunities for how students can lead us towards even greater accomplishments.

The EMS Energy Institute presents the 2024 Energy Xchange Seminar Series. This presentation will feature Sarma Pisupati, Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering, Chemical Engineering, and Director of the Center for Critical Minerals (C2M), with his presentation titled, "Mineral Security Challenges in Meeting the Goal of Net-Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050". This event is free and parking is available at the Institute at 4 p.m.

In order to meet the ever-increasing global energy demands while addressing climate change, the development of carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) technologies is one of the critical needs. In particular, there have been significant efforts to develop innovative CO2 capture materials and CO2 conversion technologies to create a new circular carbon economy based on renewable energy.

Landscape theorist, historian, and designer Alison Hirsch visits the Stuckeman School's spring Lecture and Exhibit Series to will present “Landscape and the Working Country” as a Department of Landscape Architecture Bracken Lecture in the Stuckeman Family Building Jury Space and via Zoom. Immediately following her talk, Hirsch will open an exhibition of her work titled “The Other California: Land, loss, labor, liberated futures along phantom shores,” which will run in the Rouse Gallery until April 25.

Prof. Jeremy Guest will talk about his work to advance the circular bioeconomy through renewable resource recovery from wastewaters and through the conversion of plant-derived feedstocks into bioenergy and biobased products. Using a structured analytical approach – Quantitative Sustainable Design (QSD) – his group identifies, prioritizes, and pursues opportunities to advance novel technologies and infrastructure systems. He will demonstrate his approach to guide investment in non-sewered sanitation technologies and in precision fermentation for biomanufacturing.

Attend the AWRA 2024 Geospatial Water Technology Conference! This conference is designed to highlight existing and new geospatial and technological tools to solve water resources-related problems.

This roundtable discussion will examine the complex relationship between extractive industries, sustainable energy transitions, and environmental justice. It will cover policy mitigation of extraction impacts, community experiences, the lasting legacies of extraction, and environmental justice frameworks across diverse geographies like the Ecuadorian Amazon and the Niger Delta. The debate involves environmental scholars and practitioners on the need for sustainable extraction alongside green energy infrastructure development.

Cross-sectional SEM imaging is commonly used in nanofabrication for coating thickness measurement, process verification, and failure analysis.

How can Penn State leverage its resources and expand its partnerships to address the climate challenges faced in Pennsylvania and across this world?   In Fall 2023, the Climate Consortium was established to address this question.  In this talk, I will provide an overview of the Climate Consortium's mission and goals, review its themes and current activities, and I will invite dialogue on how best we can do that work together.   

This talk highlights some diverse applications of CT imaging relevant to multiple disciplines. These applications highlight the varied questions that can be addressed via CT and provide an overview of the services available at the Center for Quantitative Imaging, an IEE Shared Core Facility MicroCT imaging center at Penn State. 

Attend the AWRA 2024 Geospatial Water Technology Conference! This conference is designed to highlight existing and new geospatial and technological tools to solve water resources-related problems.

Gardeners of all ages, experience levels and garden sizes are invited to learn new gardening skills and get their hands dirty at the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm’s upcoming Garden Grow-How event. The event will provide seeds and advice. The event, hosted by the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm, is a collaboration with campus and community groups like the Penn State Community Garden, the Arboretum at Penn State, Zoils and Pigments, Student Farm Club and others.

The eighth annual Page Center Awards will recognize Ursula Burns, chairwoman of Teneo Holdings LLC and former chief executive officer of the Xerox Corporation, and Kelly McGinnis, chief communications officer of Levi Strauss & Co. The event is free, online and open to the public. These icons of integrity are recognized for building trust over long careers by ethically and responsibly communicating with the public.

American metropolitan areas remain segregated by race, yet the factors that create the conditions that lead to segregation have changed. Michael Bader documents and classifies neighborhood change that has occurred over the past four decades. He explains how a lack of individuals moving into these integrated neighborhoods, not their flight out of integrated neighborhoods, is a major factor that maintains segregation in the twenty-first century. In contrast to the avoidance that White residents show, people of color continue to move into predominantly White neighborhoods.

Join us for a discussion on establishing new research collaborations with social scientists and engineers being led by Vijay Narayanan, Eric Donnell, and Deborah Ehrenthal March 25 at noon in 110 Henderson Building and on Zoom. Lunch will be provided to those registered for in-person attendance.

We are now taking the Science Buzz on the road, with the first stop being the EMS Museum! The Earth and Environmental Systems Institute is proud to host an event for discussing hot topics in science, new findings, sticky research challenges, and ideas for motivation and collaboration. On your way to work, stop by the EMS Museum in the Deike Building for some informal conversations over coffee and a light breakfast.