LU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering teams with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to teach “Engineering with Nature”
March 25, 2021 | by Haley Strahan
The Lamar University Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering has partnered with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to produce a series of graduate courses on “Engineering with Nature.”
The aim of the 3-course series is to introduce and explore the concept of engineering that takes advantage of natural environmental features, such as using oyster reefs for surge protection or marshes
to protect from hurricanes.
“We want to encourage our students to embrace the idea of using ‘gray’ and ‘green’ building concepts together,” explained Dr. Liv Haselbach, Chair of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. “At its best, this type of engineering both protects us and restores our natural habitat.”
The Engineering with Nature (EwN) course series is taught by members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), both to LU engineering students as part of their degrees, but also to Army engineers or other professionals for career development. “Anyone with a bachelor’s degree in engineering is encouraged to take the courses,” added Dr. Haselbach. “Even those who are interested in the subject but not necessarily seeking a new degree.” To broaden the audience even further, all courses will be available in a hybrid model, which allows students to participate remotely for the lectures.
Under Dr. Haselbach’s leadership, the LU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering has expanded its research into the areas of environmentally sound engineering and sustainability. “In developing such a series of courses, Lamar University has formalized and advanced its intent to support sustainable engineering to a significant and impressive degree,” noted Dr. Todd Bridges, a senior research scientist with the Engineering with Nature Program and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The USACE EwN website is at https://ewn.el.erdc.dren.mil/.
Two Engineering with Nature courses are being taught presently, with the third recently approved to debut in the summer of 2021. The suite of courses is currently taught by the following USACE instructors:
Dr. Duncan Bryant
Research Hydraulic Engineer
Coastal and Hydraulic Laboratory
USACE, Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC)
Vicksburg, Miss.
Dr. Tosin Sekoni
Program Manager – Basic Research (Acting)
Office of the Technical Director
Installations and Operational Environments
USACE, Engineer Research and Development Center
Vicksburg, Miss.
Mr. Timothy J. White, P.E., PMP
Resident Engineer
USACE Port Arthur Resident Office
Port Arthur, Texas
Dr. Catherine Thomas
Research Scientist
Environmental Laboratory
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Research and Development Center (ERDC)
Vicksburg, Miss.
The aim of the 3-course series is to introduce and explore the concept of engineering that takes advantage of natural environmental features, such as using oyster reefs for surge protection or marshes
to protect from hurricanes.“We want to encourage our students to embrace the idea of using ‘gray’ and ‘green’ building concepts together,” explained Dr. Liv Haselbach, Chair of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. “At its best, this type of engineering both protects us and restores our natural habitat.”
The Engineering with Nature (EwN) course series is taught by members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), both to LU engineering students as part of their degrees, but also to Army engineers or other professionals for career development. “Anyone with a bachelor’s degree in engineering is encouraged to take the courses,” added Dr. Haselbach. “Even those who are interested in the subject but not necessarily seeking a new degree.” To broaden the audience even further, all courses will be available in a hybrid model, which allows students to participate remotely for the lectures.
Under Dr. Haselbach’s leadership, the LU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering has expanded its research into the areas of environmentally sound engineering and sustainability. “In developing such a series of courses, Lamar University has formalized and advanced its intent to support sustainable engineering to a significant and impressive degree,” noted Dr. Todd Bridges, a senior research scientist with the Engineering with Nature Program and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The USACE EwN website is at https://ewn.el.erdc.dren.mil/.
Two Engineering with Nature courses are being taught presently, with the third recently approved to debut in the summer of 2021. The suite of courses is currently taught by the following USACE instructors:
Dr. Duncan Bryant
Research Hydraulic Engineer
Coastal and Hydraulic Laboratory
USACE, Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC)
Vicksburg, Miss.
Dr. Tosin Sekoni
Program Manager – Basic Research (Acting)
Office of the Technical Director
Installations and Operational Environments
USACE, Engineer Research and Development Center
Vicksburg, Miss.
Mr. Timothy J. White, P.E., PMP
Resident Engineer
USACE Port Arthur Resident Office
Port Arthur, Texas
Dr. Catherine Thomas
Research Scientist
Environmental Laboratory
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Research and Development Center (ERDC)
Vicksburg, Miss.