Thomas Abdallah, P.E., LEED AP’s Post

Excited to share that a paper I co-authored during my time at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has just been published! Our research dives into the complexities of equitable decarbonization from the national to community-scale perspective. We show that the U.S. top-down approach to an energy equity framework for decarbonization, while necessary for large-scale policymaking, does not identify all disadvantaged communities nor the diversity and complexity of their concerns and is insufficient alone to ensure equitable decarbonization. https://lnkd.in/guY2Bs3Z

Beneath your feet, Idaho rangelands are sequestering carbon from the atmosphere. That’s a really good thing for the earth, and could be an economic booster for Idaho ranchers. Jared Talley and his Grand Challenge project students and community stakeholders want to figure out why western public rangelands do not currently have carbon projects, and what can be done to change that. Learn more about how students are engaging in Grand Challenges!

Excited to share some insights into our current work on sustainable energy solutions! 🌱 As part of the CATART Project, my colleague Ekaitz Valtierra Martínez and I are dedicated to advancing the field of photocatalytic materials. Our research focuses on two critical reactions: CO2 reduction and water splitting, to produce solar fuels. 🌞 My PhD thesis is centered on developing these sustainable materials, aiming to contribute to global sustainability efforts. By adhering to the principles of green chemistry, we hope to play a role in combating climate change and paving the way for the use of solar energy as a viable resource. In this short clip, we show you how we set up our photocatalytic reactor. 💡💚 If you want a more detailed description of our work, here's a link! https://lnkd.in/gvumPVYH

Thrilled to announce the publication of my latest paper, "Specification of a Greenhouse in Cold Climate Condition, Mathematical Model and Optimization". In this study, a mathematical energy model to calculate the energy demand of a multizone greenhouse ( Serres St-Élie), as a case study, was developed. It is shown that the present energy model can calculate the energy demand of a greenhouse with an accuracy of 6 percent. Also, the potential of heat recovery to use PCM or HRV was investigated. Many thanks to the co-authors of this paper: Professor Sorin, Dr. Ghaderi, Dr. Reddick, and Mr. Grégoire https://lnkd.in/gZN6Q-QK

Meet the team Monday! Our next, and one of the newest team members is Haley Kujawa from the Department of biology. What is your background? My educational background was focused primarily in ecological engineering. I completed my Bachelor of Science at Virginia Tech in Biological Systems Engineering and moved to Ohio State to complete graduate studies in Environmental Science. My research focused on using watershed modeling as a tool to help practitioners identify pathways to reduce nutrient runoff from agriculture. I spent significant time in my graduate program engaging diverse groups of potential end-users (non-profit groups, governmental agencies, landowners, etc.) throughout projects to facilitate use of research products in applied settings. What is your role in Aqua-NbS? I am a post-doctoral researcher in Aqua-NbS. My goal is to use environmental modeling to integrate multiple data sources to optimize aquatic nature-based solutions on the landscape for water quality climate adaptation (e.g., water quality) and mitigation (e.g., carbon storage). How do you see yourself in this interdisciplinary project? Environmental modeling of aquatic nature-based solutions focused on physical transport of materials (water, nutrients, carbon, etc.) is one tool that exists in the wealth of knowledge offered by the center. However, physical environmental modeling informed by other areas of research, such as human decision-making processes and economics, will create more realistic scenarios that are better tailored for use by policymakers and practitioners. Where do you think Aqua NbS will be in 5 years? I see Aqua-NbS as a center with an array of scientific tools and products that can help from the large scale (e.g., state) down to local scale (e.g., environmental managers) implement Aqua-NbS solutions to address climate change and environmental issues. 

Last week, I virtually presented the preliminary results of my recent study, "Environmental and Economic Impacts of US Wood Pellet Export" at the United States Society for Ecological Economics (USSEE) 13th Biennial Conference. I am implementing #GTAP to see what will happen if we put a trade barrier on wood pellet exports and use the feedstock for the domestic energy market. This study is important because the US is the second largest consumer of energy, but only 13% of its energy consumption is renewable. I am still working on the model. I will share more results. [Conference Program PDF](https://lnkd.in/eWW2pmYx)

Not so shocking - study finds education is among the strategies for reducing barriers to implementing nature based solutions: https://lnkd.in/eDfrRy_e

I’m pleased and proud to share that our WSP in the UK and eftec report on “The Importance of Natural Capital to the Scottish Economy” launched on Monday. It was really rewarding to manage and contribute to this exciting project for The Scottish Government over the last year. Here are some key highlights and recommendations: - Our study provides a more comprehensive measure of natural capital reliance that estimates additional value of nature either hidden or beyond the boundaries of Scottish economic data; - By the most comprehensive method, industries relying on natural capital (excluding non-renewables) have supported around £40bn of total economic output, and over 260,000 direct and indirect jobs; - Industries highly reliant on natural capital should directly support their supply chain to better manage the key habitats that provide nature-based services and inputs; and  - Policy makers should recognise the non-market and social value of nature and communicate these benefits along with traditional economic data. Habitats that provide ecosystem services that are not substitutable should be protected or given more importance in environmental management and developmental policies. Executive Summary and full report: https://lnkd.in/egRq-n5i Press release: https://lnkd.in/epBdXY7x #nature #naturalcapital #valuation #economics #scotland Adarsh Varma Ian Dickie Karli Jeffery Ryan Smith Paul Chung Vaughn Lewis

If you are curious about the latest collaboration between @University of Tennessee, Knoxville, @Czech Technical University in Prague and @ TDEC Water Resources for #SustainableWatershedManagement, here is our recent publication - thanks @MDPIOpenAccess. Dive into our findings on sediment transport predictions and recommendations for utilizing globally available data. Wonderful team: @Miroslav Bauer, @Barbora Jáchymová, @Josef Krása, @John S. Schwartz, @Tomáš Dostál 

Wood Research & Innovation & Human Capital As Ireland targets ambitious afforestation targets of 18% by 2050, more highly skilled and motivated human capital will be required across the entire forest and wood products sector, which requires ongoing investment. Recent labour force analysis [linked below], conducted by Coillte and Forest Industries Ireland concludes that the industry will need to create over 1,770 additional jobs over the next decade to meet the ambitions of the Irish Forest Strategy and increased levels of planting, timber production and processing output. Pictured are some of NXTGENWOOD PhD students and post-doctoral researchers, at a recent AMBER Centre materials conference hosted by Trinity College Dublin. They access top class training across their 5 Irish host universities - Trinity College Dublin, University College Cork, University College Dublin, University of Galway & University of Limerick. Jack Moore Minu Masliha Jessica De Micco Ievgen Nedrygailov Muhammad Muddasar Sumit Sukhbasi Lal, Ph.D TRANSLATE PMNC Trinity College Dublin Training across specialized research institutes and research centres, and access to top class research infrastructures and international collaborations enhances their research and training. #advancedmaterials #bark #battery #biocomposites #bioeconomy #biomaterials #biopolymers #biorefinery #cellulose #chemistry #circulareconomy #climate #coatings #education #energy #hemicellulose #irishbioeconomy #lignin #research #sustainabledevelopment #sustainablematerials #training #wood #woodisgood https://lnkd.in/eyM9F9P2