CHEE Seminar: Kara Nelson
Monday, November 6, 2023 – 3:00 p.m.
Kara Nelson
Professor of Environmental Engineering
Chancellor’s Chair in Development Engineering
University of California at Berkeley
"Water Systems of the Future"
Speech & Hearing Building, Room 205
Social Hour immediately following the seminar in Old Engineering 157 (Graduate Student Lounge) at 4:00 p.m.
ABSTRACT
Innovation is needed for urban water infrastructure to meet the joint challenges of a changing climate, population growth, and ensuring equity. Water reuse, resource recovery, and decentralized systems are all components of One Water solutions that can contribute to addressing these challenges. However, significant knowledge gaps must be addressed for these solutions to realize their potential. In this talk, I will share ongoing research that aims to address knowledge gaps in these innovative practices and employs systems thinking. First, I will discuss research on the water microbiome to enable the practice of direct potable reuse (turning wastewater directly back into drinking water); insights from this research have the potential to make all drinking water safer. Next, I will share research that aims to make building-scale, non-potable reuse more energy efficient and incorporate nutrient recovery.
BIOSKETCH
Dr. Kara Nelson is a professor of environmental engineering and holds the Blum Chancellor’s Chair in development engineering at U.C. Berkeley. Prof. Nelson is passionate about developing innovative solutions to water quality challenges through the lens of equity and environmental sustainability. She teaches courses on innovation in the water sector, drinking water and wastewater treatment processes, pathogen detection, and pathogen inactivation, taking into consideration the wide range of contexts that exist in low to high-income countries. Her research program investigates practices for water reuse, disinfection, nutrient recovery, and international WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene), which draw on her expertise in a wide range of treatment processes. Since April 2020, she has led a large multidisciplinary team developing innovative methods for monitoring wastewater as part of COVID response and translating these tools to full-scale implementation.