Science & Technology

The WashU Sustainability Fund has launched to provide funding to WashU community members for small-scale sustainability projects.

The “Share Our Stuff” program collects items during student move-out each year to divert them from landfills. Events are held regularly to get the items to new homes. The program is hosting a fashion sale from noon-4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 13, at its North Campus warehouse, 700 Rosedale Ave.

Feng Jiao, a professor of energy, environmental and chemical engineering at the McKelvey School of Engineering, will lead work designed to address food insecurity in low- and middle-income countries.

Washington University’s new Center for the Environment begins its work, another step forward in the “Here and Next” strategic plan.

The Share Our Stuff collection drive is getting underway at WashU, helping to keep items out of landfills as students move out.

Washington University has acquired three electric shuttles as part of its Danforth Campus fleet. The shuttles will be on display at the Earth Day Festival in Forest Park April 22-23.

Fuzhong Zhang, at the McKelvey School of Engineering, developed a method to create synthetic spider silk at high yields while retaining strength and toughness using mussel foot proteins.

For the green energy revolution to be successful, scientists must develop more cost-effective and sustainable battery technologies. Researchers in the McKelvey School of Engineering are spending their energy on just that.

As part of Active Transportation Month in April, the Sustainability, Parking & Transportation, and Operations & Facilities Management offices are hosting commuter fairs and a commuter challenge to encourage low-carbon means of transportation. 

Young-Shin Jun, a professor at the McKelvey School of Engineering, and her team are extracting valuable rare earth elements from coal fly ash, a fine, powdery waste product from the combustion of coal. The process is ultimately a path toward reducing and remediating waste products.