Resilient re-designs for real-world problems

Maya Westcott

Oct 16, 2024

To adequately serve society, today’s infrastructure must be built to adapt to rapid technological advancements and imminent global threats like climate change. Civil and environmental engineers are learning how to work with resilience at the forefront, constructing roads, bridges, and water systems that meet the needs of their community and withstand uncertain and complex future conditions.

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University offers the Designing Resilient and Sustainable Infrastructure course to teach just that. Bringing together students from each of the department’s four focus areas of study – Intelligent Engineered Systems and Society, Climate-Resilient Environmental Systems and Technologies, Sustainable Energy and Transportation Systems, and Mechanics, Chemistry, and Materials – this graduate-level class fosters interdisciplinary collaboration to solve real-world infrastructure problems with a sustainable, resilient, and equitable solution.

“As civil engineers, we’re designing the infrastructure that serves society. So, we have a responsibility to think holistically about the impact of our work on the world,” said SSarah Christian, associate teaching professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. “This course requires students to think critically about how our designs interact with the natural and social environments.”

Christian began the semester covering foundational concepts and analyzing case studies of infrastructure systems withstanding or failing in the face of climate stressors. Students researched analysis methods used to assess different aspects of sustainability and resilience and emerging technologies that showed potential in improving these traits. In the second half of the course, teams tackled design projects to address a real-world problem of their choice and develop a climate-resilient and environmentally conscious solution.

This course requires students to think critically about how civil engineering designs interact with the natural and social environments.

Sarah Christian, Associate Teaching Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
One of the stand out projects, “Energy Generation for Malé,” was led by Willem Goedecke, a master’s student studying civil and environmental engineering. Inspired by his recent internship with Water Mission and his passion for energy infrastructure, Goedecke’s team proposed a floating aquatic solar farm to replace the island of Malé’s reliance on imported diesel fuel-powered energy. The design accounted for the island’s limited land space, dependance on mainland India for which travels are financially and environmentally strenuous, and the desire to preserve the bay’s surrounding endangered coral reef species.

“Due to its flexible and floating design, the solar farm can withstand related threats like sea-level rise. It is also more sustainable, as off-grid solar farms drastically reduce carbon emissions and require little maintenance,” Goedecke explained. “This solution would empower Malé to be more independent and resilient to future uncertainties.”

At the conclusion of the course, the teams presented their ideas and discussed the tradeoffs of the designs. Students left the class with a deeper understanding of the multifaceted nature of sustainability and resilience.

“I learned that sustainability and resilience are not just about being environmentally conscious,” Goedecke reflects. “They’re necessities that consider a design’s entire lifecycle and the wellbeing of the people who use it, in addition to its environmental impact. I plan on remembering those lessons as I search for full-time job opportunities in the future.”

By blending theory and hands-on projects, Designing Resilient and Sustainable Infrastructure empowers students to envision the future of infrastructure in a way that prioritizes adaptability and long-term sustainability. “We want our students to not only solve today's problems but to anticipate and design for tomorrow's challenges,” says Christian.