New Master of Engineering Program will Create a Climate Innovation Culture

Damages caused by the changing climate—from sea level rise to food insecurity—are far-reaching, and these effects are felt most keenly by the world’s most economically vulnerable people.

The global cost of the now-inevitable losses that climate change will incur tallies up to about one trillion dollars per year, and the global cost of mitigating further damages adds another trillion.

The climate, resilience, and sustainability space urgently needs engineers to develop and apply sustainable solutions to emerging crises for diverse populations of people, and to help communities adapt to unavoidable changes.

Skills like greenhouse gas accounting, energy management, carbon modeling, holistic design for climate adaptation and business acumen are in short supply, and the demand is only growing. With its new Master of Engineering in Climate and Sustainability Engineering, Duke aims to help meet that need.

Applications are now being accepted for fall admission.

“The need for a new generation of engineering professionals who can immediately implement sustained actions is our motivation for launching the new Master of Engineering in Climate and Sustainability Engineering,” said Henri Gavin, the W.H. Gardner, Jr. Chair of Civil & Environmental Engineering at Duke. “The world requires engineering solutions that mitigate the effects of climate change, but also those that can help communities and organizations adapt and increase their resilience to those effects.”

Duke stakeholders evaluated similar programs offered by other schools, assessed job openings, and forecasted future technical needs before developing the new curriculum and launching the MEng. “We identified gaps and created the program specifically to fill those gaps,” said Gavin.

The new program is structured around four pillars: energy transition, sustainable infrastructure for climate change adaptation and mitigation, sustainable materials and circular economy, and climate finance. The Duke MEng degree emphasizes business fundamentals, the management of high-tech industries, and a professional internship component that is supported by proactive career services specifically targeting early-career employment in climate and sustainability engineering.

Leading the new Master of Engineering program as executive in residence is Sara Oliver, Class of 2006. Oliver returns to Duke from 17 years as a practicing engineer and program manager.

Most recently, over eight years at Michael Baker International she managed a contract with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, also known as FEMA. Oliver was charged to inform the way communities understand and think about disaster risks and to empower them to take the steps needed to be more resilient against them.

“The world desperately needs engineers equipped to synthesize the big picture of the climate landscape with the technical expertise required to implement detailed engineering solutions,” said Oliver. “This new MEng program will fill this acute need by leveraging Duke’s deep expertise and resources and empowering us to train a pipeline of vigilant leaders.”

“We expect that the multiplier effect of our graduates’ future professional collaborations on climate solutions projects will help achieve the Duke Climate Commitment’s goal of a ‘resilient, flourishing, net-zero-carbon world by mid-century,’” added Gavin.