Around the world, more than three times the population of the United States lack access to safe drinking water and more than 2 million people–most of them children–die every year from water-borne illnesses. Tsunamis are both unpredictable and deadly.
At the University of Rhode Island, researchers are seeking better ways to provide potable water and stop pollution from contaminating water supplies.
Associate Professor Vinka Oyanedel-Craver is helping communities in remote villages in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, India, Jordan, and Kenya manufacture inexpensive ceramic water filters. Her students have developed a small, portable solar water treatment system for the rural city in the Dominican Republic.
Assistant Professor Ali Akanda and his expertise in computer modeling of water supplies, floods and droughts. He combines the models with research in water security, climate change and global health to create early warning systems to benefit public health.
Tsunamis are both unpredictable and deadly. 100,000 souls were lost during the Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami in 2004. Distinguished Engineering Professor Stephan Grilli is studying Tsunamis, and is considered one of the world experts on the topic.
- Swelling the Banks - As climate change causes increasingly catastrophic river flooding in Rhode Island, URI scientists are fighting back.
- Department of Energy Awards URI Team Funding for Carbon Capture Analysis - University of Rhode Island (URI) received funding from the U.S. Department of Energy in partnership with the University of Kentucky to develop an ocean-faring electrochemical direct ocean capture system for carbon. This technology would be using renewable energy to drive a device that removes carbon dioxide (CO2) from ocean water. Climate change is driven by […]
- URI’s Water for the World Lab Works to Reach Sustainable Water Goals - The United Nations has observed World Water Day annually on March 22 since 1993. It’s a global celebration of water and recognition to raise awareness of the 2.2 billion people living without access to safe drinking water. Every year, UN-Water, the UN’s coordination mechanism on water and sanitation — sets the theme for World Water […]
- Cross-Disciplinary URI Team Forms Neuro-Learning Center - A URI team featuring Engineering Professor Kunal Mankodiya will establish a Neuro-Learning Center that will include cutting-edge equipment to study the relationship between brain activity and behavior, brain mapping, and neuroplasticity.
Engineering isn’t about doing research for the sake of doing research. It should be useful and make an impact in people's livesAssociate Professor, Vinka Oyanedel-Craver
Faculty
Associate Professor and Graduate Director
Civil and Environmental Engineering
401.874.7050
akanda@uri.edu
Professor (Courtesy Appointment)
Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geosciences
401.874.7053
tboving@uri.edu
Professor & Associate Dean of Research
Civil and Environmental Engineering
401.874.2784
craver@uri.edu