UBC Environmental Engineering Students Win First Place at International WEFTEC Design Competition
A team of five Environmental Engineering students from UBC has won first place at the 2025 Student Design Competition during the Water Environment Federation Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC) in Chicago, Illinois. Team StormWise Innovations, made up of Jaden Gauw, Jaden Mah, Kajal Mishra, Cindy Chow and Megan Slot, represented both The University of British Columbia and Canada after earning first place earlier this year at the British Columbia Water and Wastewater Association (BCWWA) Student Design Competition (Water Environment Category). The team was led by Dr. Zeina Baalbaki, a Lecturer in the Department of Civil Engineering. The WEFTEC Student Design Competition […]
UBC Civil Engineering Graduate Students Receive Wall Research Awards
Three UBC Civil Engineering students received 2025 Wall Awards for research in flood forecasting, sustainable stormwater management, and 3D concrete printing.
Where Civil Engineering Meets Public Health: A Closer Look at Tire Wear Pollution
This Q&A features one of the winners of the 2025 Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) competition, a university-wide challenge that invites graduate students to present their research in just three minutes—using only one slide and no jargon. The goal? To make complex research accessible, engaging, and inspiring to a broad audience. In this spotlight, you’ll hear from Katie Moloney, a UBC Civil Engineering graduate student whose research is shedding light on an emerging and often overlooked source of pollution: tire wear particles. Her work explores how this invisible pollutant travels through urban air, transforms chemically, and may impact lung health—bridging environmental engineering […]
UBC Research Tackles Toxic Tire Chemical to Protect Aquatic Life
A research initiative led by Dr. Rachel Scholes from UBC Civil Engineering and funded by the British Columbia Salmon Restoration and Innovation Fund (BCSRIF) is addressing the environmental impact of 6PPDQ, a toxic chemical produced from tire wear that poses a significant threat to sensitive aquatic species. To better understand the spread and concentration of 6PPDQ in urban environments, over 100 water samples were collected from Metro Vancouver streams. This data has played a key role in shaping British Columbia’s new provincial water quality guideline for 6PPDQ, providing a regulatory framework to monitor and limit this pollutant in freshwater ecosystems. Recognizing […]
Boston Bar Landfill Renewal Project is D&I Project Poster Winner
On Design and Innovation Day, the project titled “The Boston Bar Landfill Closure and Site Renewal” by Team 19 from CIVL 446 was selected as the winner of the project poster category among several amazing projects by civil engineering students. This project, undertaken in collaboration with Dr. Iqbal Bhuiyan, P.Eng. of Sperling Hansen Associates (SHA), addresses the critical need to rehabilitate the Old Boston Bar Landfill, which has lacked a proper closure system since the 1980s, posing risks to public health, safety, and the environment Team 19, consisting of Matthew Gunn, Jack Fraser, Arshad Delawar, Lisa Strang, Zoë Robertson, Issa […]
UBC Civil Engineering Teams Headed to Nationals
The American Society of Civil Engineering chapter of UBC (UBC ASCE Student Chapter) has successfully hosted the 2024 ASCE Pacific Northwest symposium. The two-day event took place on April 6th and 7th. Over 350 participants, judges, and volunteers from the United States and Canada competed in four competitions: Steel Bridge, Concrete Canoe, Sustainable Solutions and Mead Paper UBC Steel Bridge has secured their ticket to the 2024 Student Steel Bridge Competition Nationals after achieving remarkable success at the regional qualifiers hosted at UBC. Placing second overall, the UBC Steel Bridge team showcased exceptional skill and precision in various categories. Notably, they […]
Civil Student Spotlight – Building and Maintaining Connections
Kimia Miraki Program: Civil Engineering Degree: Bachelor of Applied Science Campus: Vancouver What extracurricular activities are you currently involved in? I am currently the co-president of the ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineering) Student Chapter of UBC, where I am involved in leading our team through various projects. This year, our team has undertaken significant efforts, including organizing the ASCE x WIN (Women’s Infrastructure Network) Discussion Panel, focused on engineering careers for women in construction. Additionally, we’ve been diligently preparing for the 2024 Pacific Northwest Student Symposium, where 300 students from across West Coast will fly into UBC to participate in […]
Civil Student Spotlight – Striving to Develop Ideas Into a Reality
Kelly Kim Degree: Bachelor of Applied Science Program: Civil Engineering Campus: Vancouver What extracurricular activities are you currently involved in? Currently, I am involved in the Concrete Toboggan Engineering Design Team as the Ski Design Subteam Lead, the Civil Engineering Undergraduate Society (Civil Club) as Co-President, and I work part-time with Industra Construction Corp as a Project Coordinator. Throughout my undergraduate degree, I have also been involved with the Varsity Outdoor Club, the Engineering Undergraduate Society, the Scholar’s Advisory Council, and intramural soccer and futsal. How do you balance between being a student and your club involvements? Balancing my academics with […]
Alumni Talk – “I was willing to do work that others weren’t.”
Annie Stancheva Degree: Bachelor of Applied Science Grad year: 2015 Program: Civil Engineering Campus: Vancouver Current Company: Urban Systems-multi disciplinary company based out of Kamloops, with many offices across Canada. The company is a networked organization where the structure is non-traditional. The structure allows for employees to have internal and external clients while working under the company umbrella. What this results in is a flat structure where an engineer can have different roles on different projects, rather than one specific role on every project. Current Area of Work: Civil Engineering: underground utilities (water, sewer, telecom, and gas), roads, lot grading. My […]
UBC Civil in the Media – Learning from Turkiye earthquake
UBC engineering experts were among a group of researchers that visited Turkey to study the aftermath of its earthquake
Rain gardens could save salmon from toxic tire chemicals
Salmon holds immense ecological and cultural significance in B.C. However, the survival of these magnificent fish is under threat due to multiple stressors. Among the challenge salmon fac is a toxic chemical associated with car tires, which finds its way into our rivers and streams when rainwater washes it off roads. Fortunately, there’s a ray of hope – recent research shows that specially designed rain gardens could help protect salmon from this harmful compound. The chemical 6PPD-quinone is a byproduct that forms when car tires interact with the atmosphere. Coho salmon, rainbow trout, and other fish are particularly vulnerable to its […]
Civil Engineering PhD candidate receives Doctoral Scholarship
Kishoare Tamanna, a PhD student in Civil Engineering and a UBC Killam Doctoral Scholar at the School of Engineering, is making waves in the field of sustainable infrastructure development. Working at the Applied Laboratory for Advanced Materials and Structures (ALAMS) under the guidance of Professor Shahria Alam and co-supervised by Professor Tony Yang at the UBC Smart Structures Lab, Tamanna’s research is focused on developing high-performance, seismic-resilient, and low-carbon precast concrete buildings. Growing up in Dhaka, one of the top twenty high-earthquake cities in the world, Tamanna recognized the importance in building new structures and retrofit existing structures to be seismically […]
Dr. Sara Beck brings global collaboration to UBC Civil Engineering
The Department of Civil Engineering adds to our roster of world-class researchers and educators and welcomes Assistant Professor Sara Beck to the Environmental Engineering research group. Dr. Beck joins the Department after completing post-docs at the University of Colorado and Eawag, the Swiss Federal institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, opportunities that followed a Fulbright at the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand. Dr. Beck’s research broadly focuses on understanding and preventing pathogen transmission in water treatment. “The goal is to identify microbial contaminants of concern in drinking water and wastewater sources and to develop and evaluate cost effective and energy-efficient clean water […]
Dr. Tamara Etmannski receives Killam Teaching Prize
Assistant Professor of Teaching Dr. Tamara Etmannski has been recognized with the 2020/2021 Killam Teaching Prize. This award is nominated by students, colleagues, and alumni and recognizes exceptional contributions through teaching. In addition to serving as a faculty member in the Department of Civil Engineering, Dr. Etmannski holds several academic leadership roles in the Faculty of Applied Science. She is the Academic Director of the Master of Engineering Leadership (MEL) and Master of Health Leadership Policy (MHLP) programs, and Co-Director of the joint UBC/UNBC undergraduate degree in Environmental Engineering. As Assistant Professor of Teaching, Dr. Etmannski has developed many new courses around sustainability, […]
Fourth-year student receives two Pipeline Engineering awards
Jezarah Ebel was always destined for a bright future in engineering. After excelling in math and physics in high school, choosing to study Civil Engineering at UBC was a no-brainer. Driven by a newfound interest in project management, she decided to further specialize in pipeline engineering. This year, Jezarah is one of three students (along with recent Integrated Engineering graduate Rene Rao and Materials Engineering MASc student Kaiya Yamada) to receive the International Pipeline Conference (IPC) Foundation Award. She is also the sole recipient of the Young Pipeliners Association of Canada (YPAC) Prize. The IPC Awards, totaling $5,000 annually, recognize outstanding undergraduate and graduate students in the […]
Professors Li and Yang receive province’s top awards for engineers
We are excited to announce that two faculty members in our Department received the 2020 President’s Awards from Engineers and Geoscientists BC. The awards are the province’s top awards for professional engineers and geoscientists and recognize those with outstanding achievement in professional, technical, and community contributions. Professor Loretta Li received the R.A. McLachlan Memorial Award, while Professor Tony Yang earned the Meritorious Achievement Award. “These awards demonstrate how UBC Civil Engineering faculty members continue to make exceptional contributions through their groundbreaking research and their dedication to excellence in teaching and innovation,” said Department Head Bernard Laval. “On behalf of our Department, my warmest […]
Pamela Wolf hired as Assistant Professor of Teaching
We are pleased to announce that Pamela Wolf (previously Rogalski) has been hired as Assistant Professor of Teaching with the UBC Department of Civil Engineering. Pamela joined UBC School of Applied Science as a Faculty Lecturer in 2013 and has developed and delivered numerous technical communication courses to students in Civil Engineering, Material Engineering, and Engineering Physics. Among Pamela’s most significant contributions at UBC Civil is her steadfast dedication to cultivating communication, leadership and other soft skills in engineering students—a direct response to what she sees as a real cultural shift in the engineering industry. “There is now an expectation of […]
Female-led UBC Engineering student team wins at Solar Decathlon
UBC Engineering student design team, Third Quadrant Design, won first place in the Urban Single-Family Division at the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon, held April 17-19, 2020. Supervised by UBC Engineering faculty members Dr. Adam Rysanek, Dr. Sheryl Staub-French, and Dr. Susan Nesbit, Third Quadrant Design comprises of 25 UBC students across multiple engineering disciplines. It is led by three female students, Zoë Le Hong (Integrated, ’20), Aleesha Hsu (Civil, ’21), and Claire Pibrovec (Integrated, ’20), and is majority femme-identifying. The group is also supported by Engineers and Geoscientists BC, Integral Group, RJC, RDH Building Science, and Francl Architecture. Solar Decathlon is an international collegiate competition that challenges teams to […]
Civil Engineering alumna strives to decrease gender imbalance
Kelsie Priest, a UBC Civil Engineering Alumna and a Structural Engineer with Glotman Simpson, is actively working to decrease gender imbalance in the engineering community. Priest currently serves as the co-chair of Women in Consulting Engineering (WCE), which is focused on “supporting and empowering women in engineering and increasing gender diversity and inclusion in [the] industry.” Priest believes with the support of groups like WCE, she has gained the tools and confidence to aspire to leadership roles in engineering despite gender biases. She encourages parents with daughters interested in engineering to talk to a professional in the industry. There are an abundance […]
Dr. Sheryl Staub-French Discusses Gender Gap in BC Engineering
Recent data from Statistics Canada indicates that despite the shortage in skilled engineers in British Columbia, the percentage of female students enrolled in post-secondary engineering programs (55.7%) continues to lag behind other programs such as health (72.7%) and law/social sciences (66.4%). In industry, women make up 12% of engineering jobs in BC and 20% of engineers-in-training (recently graduated category). UBC Civil Engineering Professor and Dean’s adviser on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, Dr. Sheryl Staub-French, along with Dr. Kathy Tarnai-Lokhorst, President of Engineers and Geoscientists BC (EGBC), were recently featured in an article published in Business Vancouver. Both Dr. Staub-French and Dr. Tarnai-Lokhorst note that […]
UBC Civil Prof. Featured as Keynote Speaker at STEM Conference
On Sept. 16 2018, UBC Civil Professor Dr. Loretta Li was featured as one of the keynote speakers at this year’s STEM Career Conference, held at the Marriott Pinnacle Downtown Hotel. The conference is an annual event for high school and university students who excel at or are interested in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields. The Annual STEM Career Conference for Youth brings industry leaders and successful professionals in various STEM fields to share their rich experience in professional careers that are related to STEM. Ths year keynote speakers shared insight, stories, perspectives, and experiences in different STEM careers, […]
Civil Engineering’s Dr. Loretta Li Speaks at Young WISE Event
Growing up in a family of only daughters and attending an all-girls school run by nuns, Civil Engineering Professor Dr. Loretta Li never thought to differentiate activities between genders. A rarity in 1950s Hong Kong, her father emphasized the importance of education for girls, supporting his daughters’ academic aspirations despite bewilderment from extended family and friends. Professor Li has carried her father’s positive attitude forward, forging a professional career in engineering at a time when there were few women in the field. Last week, Dr. Li was able to share her experiences in Engineering with young women aspiring to enter STEM fields at […]
Civil Engineering Professor a BC Business 2018 STEM Star
Dr. Sheryl Staub-French recognized in the magazine’s list of influential women in STEM Civil Engineering Professor Sheryl Staub-French was recently acknowledged in BC Business Magazine’s B.C.’s Most Influential Women 2018: Stem Stars, a list that included six faculty members from UBC Applied Science, and several students and alumni. This year’s edition highlights influential women who are industry leaders and innovators in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), recognizing the gender gap that remains in these fields and the need for female representation. The list recognized Staub-French for her research at UBC, which includes directing the BIM TOPiCS Lab (Building Information Modelling from the perspectives of […]
Professor Staub-French named Dean’s Advisor on EDI
At last Sunday’s Academy Awards, Lee Unkrich, the director of the animated film Coco, concluded his acceptance speech by reminding viewers that “representation matters.” The story of a Mexican boy’s journey through the Land of the Dead, Coco features an almost all-Latino voice cast and was inspired by Mexico’s rich culture and traditions. Another hit film, Black Panther, is notable not only for being the first Marvel movie to feature a predominantly black cast and strong African cultural elements, but also for including characters and story points that may inspire young people — particularly young girls and women of colour — […]
Prof. Staub-French joins Engendering Success in STEM (ESS)
Prof. Sheryl Staub-French brings outreach expertise to Engendering Success in STEM (ESS), a new partnership working to advance gender equity in science, technology, engineering and math. This important initiative is a collaboration between scholars, experts in computer science and engineering, and educational and industry partners who aim to close the gender gap and improve experiences and outcomes in STEM.
How to thrive in spite of imposter syndrome
Sheryl Staub-French, Goldcorp Professor in Women in Engineering, spoke with CBC about the ongoing efforts to promote engineering as a career choice for young women, the imposter syndrome students sometimes face, and potential ways to deal with it. The Goldcorp Professorship in Women in Engineering focuses on promoting engineering as a creative and rewarding career. Learn more. Segment begins at 31:12.
Prof. Loretta Li analyzes ancient medicinal clay
Wednesday, February 3, 2016 | By Lindsay Cashin Professor Loretta Li is mentioned in a recent UBC Media release about research being conducted on Kisameet clay, long used by the Heiltsuk First Nation for its healing potential. First Nation’s clay kills antibiotic-resistant bacteria in lab tests – CBC News When Tradition Meets Business and Science: The Complex World of Kisameet Clay – The Tyee Ancient mud from Canada: New tool to combat “superbugs”? – Radio Canada International (Audio)
Prof. Susan Nesbit appointed Senior Teaching Fellow
Friday, October 30, 2015 | By Lindsay Cashin Professor Susan Nesbit has been appointed as Senior Teaching Fellow 2015-2016 of the UBC Sustainability Initiative. The UBC Sustainability Initiative was established in 2010 to carry out the University’s commitment to the integration of its operational and academic efforts in sustainability. Sustainability Fellowships are awarded to UBC faculty members who are “leading the development of sustainability curriculum within their department or faculty.” In her role as Senior Fellow, Dr. Nesbit is working with other UBC sustainability fellows to support the development of sustainability learning pathways. She is also assisting the USI Teaching Learning […]
Dr. Ruth Derksen “Daughters in the City” Q&A
Monday, May 25, 2015 | By Lindsay Cashin Civil instructor Ruth Derksen, who teaches technical communication in the Faculty of Applied Science, discusses her award-winning book Daughters in the City in a Q&A with local media. Daughters in the City tells the story of young Mennonite women who arrived in Vancouver in the early 1930s. The Q&A appeared in The Province, the Vancouver Sun, the Edmonton Journal, and the Calgary Herald. Dr. Derksen is appearing Thursday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. in the J. Whalley Room at the Museum of Vancouver to give a presentation entitled Daughters in the City: Mennonite Maids in Vancouver.
Meet the new Civil Club President! Q & A with Alyssa Schultz
Meet the new Civil Club President! The Department presents a Q & A with Alyssa Schultz. 1. Please share a brief bio with us – who is our new President? Born and raised in North Vancouver, UBC has always been a dream of mine, although engineering was not always on my radar. My passion for math and science was obvious from childhood, and I also enjoyed teaching others and helping people learn. Along with my role as Civil Club President, I feel that UBC Engineering allows me to pursue all those interests. When I am off campus, I put a lot of time […]
Dr. Staub-French: Goldcorp Professor in Women in Engineering
From left to right: Tirajeh Mazaheri, MECH student and Goldcorp Intern, Applied Science Dean Marc Parlange; Florence Belanger, Goldcorp Intern; Jaime Awmack, UBC alumna (BASc/BA ‘07) and Process Engineer at Goldcorp; Sheryl Staub-French, Goldcorp Professor in Women in Engineering at UBC; Beverley Briscoe, UBC alumna (BComm ‘77), Director and Chair of the Audit Committee, Goldcorp and President, Briscoe Management Ltd; Professor Elizabeth Croft, Associate Dean, Education and Professional Development, Faculty of Applied Science, UBC; Paul Farrow, Senior VP, People and Safety, Goldcorp./ Photo: Don Erhardt VANCOUVER – The Faculty of Applied Science announces Dr. Sheryl Staub-French, associate professor in civil engineering, as […]
Civil professor co-leads Building Information Modeling project
Dr. Sheryl Staub-French is one of the leaders of the Construction and ICT project research team who published a report this week on the use of Building Information Modelling (BIM) in Canada’s construction industry. The report, entitled “The Inevitable Shift Towards Building Information Modelling (BIM) in Canada’s Construction Sector” details the main benefits, challenges and risks associated with a small business implementing BIM. Click here for more information.