Happy 120th Anniversary

Happy 120th anniversary to Purdue’s College of Engineering from the youngest department in the College: Environmental and Ecological Engineering (EEE)! We were established as an independent academic unit in 2006 to provide Purdue with its first-ever environmental engineering degree and meet the growing need for environmental engineers. Over the last 10 years, EEE has launched bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees, and now offers one of the largest environmental engineering programs in the world.

Environmental engineering programs have historically focused on research and education related to developing processes for treating and managing contaminated media, be it solid, liquid or airborne. EEE embraces this classic environmental engineering emphasis but also addresses industrial sustainability. This latter focus makes EEE unique relative to other environmental engineering programs. Distinctive features of EEE include award-winning students who are passionate about the environment, gender diversity among students and faculty, and strong research collaborations with other departments.

EEE students learn about the science and engineering associated with protecting human and environmental health, and how to design sustainable systems and technologies. Our students are well-versed in the basics: mathematics, biology, chemistry, statics, dynamics, thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, etc. In the undergraduate curriculum, there is an early focus on systems thinking and systems understanding with significant course requirements in ecology, sustainability, life cycle engineering, and industrial ecology. This strong emphasis on systems engineering is needed to manage systems with substantial complexity and connectivity to other systems, in a context in which sociological, economic and environmental attributes must be considered. EEE students learn to design engineering systems that can exist in harmony with the natural world.

EEE focuses on responding to society’s need to understand the world we live in, and developing strategies for sustainably managing Earth’s resources and ecosystems, ensuring they will be available for generations to come. Through their research, EEE faculty members are addressing such issues as water and wastewater treatment; urban sustainability; piping systems; avoiding manufacturing process waste; water and nutrient cycles; energy-efficient production, bio-based materials and products; life cycle engineering; value recovery from waste streams; urban sustainability; economics/environment of green energy technologies; contaminants and public health; green materials; and recycling/remanufacturing.

EEE is engineering a future of blue water and green landscapes, of healthy families and thriving economies. And that has recently included responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some EEE faculty are undertaking research efforts to stem the pandemic and respond resiliently, while others are looking ahead to help society avoid future environmental challenges. You can hear more about our research efforts in Episodes 10-12 of the “Purdue Engineering Podcast,” which we hope you’ll enjoy. On behalf of the students, staff and faculty of EEE, congratulations to the College of Engineering on 120 years.

Hail Purdue!

John W. Sutherland
Professor and Fehsenfeld Family Head
Environmental and Ecological Engineering