Sustainability

Prof. Caitlin Mueller has been named Innovator of the Year by Architectural Record for her work advancing a “vision for building design and construction that unites these disciplines with computation to create structure that are sustainable, high performing, and delightful,” reports Architectural Record. “Her group develops computational design and digital fabrication methods that integrate efficiency, performance, material circularity, and architectural expression,” Architectural Record notes. “This work spans robotic assembly of optimized trusses, fabrication of low-cost earthen and concrete systems, and algorithmic strategies for reusing salvaged wood and reassembled concrete parts.” 

The MIT Museum presents “Remembering the Future,” a new installation by artist Janet Echelman in collaboration with Prof. Caitlin Mueller, reports Kat Barandy for DesignBoom. The installation suspends above the museum’s grand lobby and will be open to the public through fall 2027. “The work transforms climate data into a three-dimensional form that invites visitors to engage both visually and conceptually,” Barandy explains.

In an opinion piece for the Financial Times, Prof. Evan Lieberman, director of the MIT Center for International Studies, spotlights how states, cities, corporations, and civil society are working to advance climate action. “Today, over 300 U.S. cities have made climate commitments, action plans, or are participating in co-operative initiatives,” Lieberman writes, “Large cities are connecting with global partners through organizations such as C40 Cities, a group of mayors representing some 700mn people worldwide.” 

Boon Uranukul PhD '19 co-founded Terra Oleo, a startup working to “develop microbes that can transform agricultural waste into a variety of oils,” reports Tim De Chant for TechCrunch. “The company selected three yeast species based on the microbes’ abilities to produce certain oils when fed with organic waste, including from agriculture and biodiesel production,” explains de Chant. “It then used genetic and metabolic engineering to boost and tune their ability to produce certain fats and triglycerides.” 

Boston Globe reporter Jon Chesto spotlights the kickoff event for the new MIT-GE Vernova Energy and Climate Alliance, which will “fund research initiatives, fellowships, and other programs with an eye toward improving energy technologies and decarbonization.” GE Vernova CEO Scott Strazik emphasized that he has been impressed with the passion and talent for clean-tech among the students at MIT and other universities. “I started these discussions with the objective that we should inspire future leaders to come into our industry and ideally come to our company,” Strazik said. “They’ve probably inspired us more than we’ve inspired them.”

New York Times reporter Catherine Porter spotlights Roofscapes, an MIT startup founded by Olivier Faber MArch '23, Tim Cousin MArch '23 and Eytan Levi MArch/MSRED '21 that aims to transform the zinc-roofed buildings in Paris into accessible green spaces as part of an effort to decrease building temperatures while improving quality of life. “We have an opportunity with all these untouched surfaces to do something that is virtually impossible anywhere else in a city like Paris,” explains Levi. “There’s a new way you can live.”

Researchers at MIT have developed a new self-assembling battery material that could help combat growing concerns about EV battery waste, reports Grace Snelling for Fast Company. The new method “makes it much easier to separate [battery] component parts, leaving them ready for recycling,” writes Snelling. 

Prof. Catherine Wolfram speaks with Financial Times reporter Simon Mundy about the EU’s decision to begin applying the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) next year. “I’m not sure the Europeans quite realize just how powerful the CBAM was as an incentive for other countries to adopt carbon pricing,” says Wolfram. “It’s really started a global conversation.” 

Inspired by a scene in Harry Potter, researchers at MIT have developed a new self-assembling battery material that could one day serve as an “easy-to-recycle alternative for manufacturing EV batteries,” reports Gayoung Lee for Gizmodo. Notably, the process doesn’t require the harsh chemical and thermal conditions that make EV battery recycling so difficult, offering promising opportunities for recycling the batteries at scale.”

Prof. Christopher Knittel speaks with WBUR reporter Miriam Wasser about the decision to build a new natural gas pipeline in New England. "A new pipeline would allow more natural gas to reach us in periods when we really need it," says Knittel. "So that's where the big savings would be."

Vijay Gadepally, senior staff member at MIT Lincoln Lab, speaks with New York Times reporter Claire Brown about the impact of AI data centers on the electrical grid. “There’s a lot of things we can do to be better stewards of the power we currently have,” says Gadepally. 

Leah Ellis, a former MIT postdoc and co-founder of MIT startup Sublime Systems, speaks with Nature reporter Emma Ulker about the company’s mission to reduce carbon emissions from cement production, how her work with co-founder Prof. Yet-Ming Chiang helped inspire her entrepreneurial journey, and her philosophy as a science entrepreneur. “At Sublime, we are tackling a hard problem — pun intended — because the cement industry is one of the most difficult to approach, owing to its sheer scale,” explains Ellis. “The motivation for our work is that change in cement-making technology has a significant impact — it’s really only once in a millennium that you get to rethink such a foundational and monumental building material.”

Popular Science reporter Mack DeGeurin spotlights Foodres.Ai Printer, an AI-assisted 3D printer developed by MIT researchers that is “capable of converting food scraps into coasters, cups, and other everyday kitchen items.” The researchers hope their invention “can repurpose waste before it reaches trash cans or compost bins, helping to foster ‘hyper-local circular economies.’”

Interesting Engineering reporter Saoirse Kerrigan spotlights a number of MIT research projects from the past decade. MIT has “long been a hub of innovation and ingenuity across multiple industries and disciplines,” writes Kerrigan. “Every year, the school’s best and brightest debut projects that push the boundaries of science and technology. From vehicles and furniture to exciting new breakthroughs in electricity generation, the school’s projects have tackled an impressive variety of subjects.” 

Prof. Noelle Selin speaks with Fast Company reporter Kristin Toussaint about the importance of air quality monitoring. “It’s really important to encourage people to understand their environment and to democratize access to measurements and science,” says Selin.