News

Highlights from the 2024 Urban Integrated Field Laboratory Principal Investigators Meeting

By Dr. Maestre, November 17th 2024

The 2024 Principal Investigators Meeting, hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), took place on October 27-28 in Rockville, MD, bringing together nearly 100 researchers from the four Urban Integrated Field Laboratories (UIFLs) funded by the DOE. Over two days, participants engaged in dynamic discussions on climate projections, hydrology, air quality, equitable decision-making, and more.

The event began with a welcome and program updates from BER management, followed by a plenary session. Here, the leads from each UIFL—including SETx-UIFL lead Dr. Paola Passalacqua—shared progress from Year 2 and outlined goals for Year 3 of the program.

In her presentation, Dr. Passalacqua provided a comprehensive overview of the Gulf Coast’s social, economic, and environmental context—the central area of the SETx-UIFL work. As a major petrochemical industrial hub, the Gulf Coast ranks among the top 10% most polluted communities in the nation. Recent years have seen rapid urbanization in the region, leading to increased impervious surfaces and heightened risks of flooding. Positioned on the coast, the community contends with multiple sources of flooding, including riverine, rainfall, and coastal surges. These acute stressors are compounded by chronic issues such as air pollution and limited economic resources.

Dr. Passalacqua emphasized that despite these challenges, the community demonstrates significant potential. Residents maintain a deep sense of pride and strong ties to their home, fueling optimism and proactive efforts. For instance, environmental sensors have been installed as part of the community’s commitment to addressing these challenges. The SETx team has cultivated strong relationships with the local population, with many UIFL researchers, including those from partner institutions like Lamar University, working in the area for extended periods. This collaboration has fostered mutual respect and allowed for the successful training of local community members.

Dr. Passalacqua highlighted SETx-UIFL’s focus on critical issues such as flooding and air pollution. Addressing these challenges requires navigating complex interconnections between the natural environment, infrastructure, and community dynamics. To effectively capture regional-scale patterns, the work relies on diverse expertise spanning multiple disciplines. Her multidisciplinary research team was well represented in the event with the attendance and showcase of the work of researchers including Nathanael Rosenheim, Christina Brelsford, Noel Estwick, Ethan Coon, Elena McDonald-Buller, Pawel Misztal, Phong Le, Qin Qian, Clayton Jeffryes, Kerry Kinney and Liv Haselbach, among others.

Dr. Passalacqua also provided updates from the thematic areas of her research center, including:

• Environmental research (climate, water, and air).
• Co-design efforts focused on community engagement and adaptation strategies.
• Equity research, which serves as the foundation of social science inquiries.
• A knowledge management platform spearheaded by Will Mobley and Suzanne Pierce, that facilitates data sharing among the research center, stakeholders, and the broader community.

^{Dr. Passalacqua presenting in the plenary session}

Dr. Passalacqua stressed that communities hold invaluable knowledge about their environments. While many residents are already well-informed about flooding events, they often lack specific information on air quality and the chemical compounds involved. “Our research emphasizes the importance of integrating this local knowledge with scientific data, creating a two-way relationship where both parties contribute valuable insights,” she explained.

Highlights from the SETx-UIFL updates included topics such as:

• High-resolution climate datasets and effective stakeholder communication.
• Flood frequency analysis using integrated hydrologic models.
• Land use and land cover forecasting powered by generative AI.
• Real-time detection of air pollution hotspots and their relationships with equity.
• Studies on outdoor/indoor pollution penetration.
• Community-generated solutions to climate challenges.
• Social vulnerability indices and their connection to health outcomes.
• Data visualization and communication strategies.
• Cross-institutional educational initiatives fostering collaboration.

Another major highlight of the first day was the session on Community and Stakeholder Engagement, which featured a presentation by Dr. Emily Brooks (DOE Fossil Energy and Carbon Management). She discussed critical topics such as the pillars of energy justice, defining the community, the importance of including marginalized voices, two-way engagement strategies, and trust-building processes.

Following the presentation, Brooks led a panel discussion that included the voices of Jeewasmi (Jee) Thapa (SETx-UIFL, Texas A&M University), Ladd Keith (SW-IFL, University of Arizona), Khalia Young (BSEC, Morgan State University), and Katherine Lieberknecht (SETx-UIFL, UT-Austin). The panel explored key aspects of community engagement, including:

• Designing inclusive engagement processes.
• Leveraging team expertise and experience.
• Success stories and lessons learned from their initiatives.
• The importance of meeting communities where they are—both geographically and linguistically.
• Building trust over time and enhancing communication effectiveness.

^{Community engagement panel, from left to right: Dr. Brooks, Dr. Young, Dr. Keith, Dr. Thapa, and Dr. Lieberknecht.}
The event continued with more than eight sessions, many featuring up to four concurrent topics. Participants from all four UIFLs discussed advancements in scientific research while emphasizing the importance of community engagement and workforce development to address climate challenges and build community resilience.

This year’s meeting also included two vibrant poster sessions, where over 70 posters, 15 of them from SETx-UIFL, showcased the work of junior and senior researchers. These sessions fostered rich discussions and collaboration ideas.

^{Ifeanyichukwu Nduka (UT-Austin Postdoctoral Researcher) presenting his research poster.}

_{^{Chih-Shen Cheng (UT-Austin Postdoctoral Researcher) conversing with Saubhagya Rathore (Oak Ridge National Laboratory Co-PI).}}

Finally, a significant addition to this year’s meeting was the cross-UIFL collaboration sessions. In these, researchers from the four UIFLs strategized joint efforts and set ambitious goals for the coming year, building excitement for their contributions to the 2025 meeting.

2024 Urban Integrated Field Laboratory Principal Investigators Meeting

By Dr. Maestre, October 25th 2024

As climate change continues to pose significant challenges worldwide, experts and researchers from the Urban Integrated Field Laboratory (UIFL) funding program (DOE) are convening for the 2024 Principal Investigators Meeting that will take place in Rockville, MD on October 27-28th. This U.S. Department of Energy hosted event aims to create a platform to cultivate and maintain vital cooperation among researchers from various fields and across research centers. Participants will engage in discussions that not only emphasize scientific research but also highlight the importance of community involvement and workforce development in tackling climate challenges. By focusing on areas such as climate scale modeling, hydrology, air quality and equitable decision-making processes, among others, the event seeks to advance our understanding of climate dynamics and develop effective strategies for resilience, ensuring that all communities can benefit from the knowledge obtained.

The event will feature a series of plenary talks and breakout sessions designed to share insights, foster dialog, and allow BER program managers the chance to engage with the teams, assess their progress and discuss future research needs. 

After the initial welcome and introductions from BER Management, the event will kick off with a Plenary Session with talks from the UIFLs involved in the program and the Urban Interagency Working Group:

In the afternoon, there will be a session dedicated to  Community and Stakeholder Engagement. This session will include a presentation on community engagement from a DOE perspective by Emily Brooks from DOE Fossil Energy and Carbon Management followed by panelist introductions and discussions, including the community organization Texas Target Communities & Katherine Liberknecht (UT-Austin).

After that, and over the next day and a half, the breakout sessions will cover these topics: 

1. Climate scale modeling and scenarios with contributions from UT-Austin researcher Ifeanyi Nduka and Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher Phong Le representing SETx-UIFL. They will explore the intricacies of climate modeling and how various scenarios can help predict future climate conditions.
2. Observational approaches with the SETx-UIFL researchers such as Qin Qian (Lamar University) and Pawel Misztal (UT-Austin). This segment will delve into the importance of observational data in understanding Air quality.
3. Community co-design, resilient solutions, and decision-making, with SETx-UIFL Jeewasmi Thapa (TAMU) and Katherine Liberknecht (UT-Austin). Their discussion will highlight the role of communities and their engagement in designing solutions that enhance resilience against climate impacts.
4. Education and workforce development will be addressed by Liv Haselbach (Lamar University) among experts from other UIFLs. This part of the session emphasizes the necessity of preparing community members and younger generations to tackle climate challenges through education and skill development.
5. Equity and social vulnerability, including SETx-UIFL researcher Nathanael Rosenheim (TAMU), that will talk about the relationships between social vulnerability and health.
6. Atmospheric conditions including the UT-Austin researcher Elena McDonald-Buller representing SETx-UIFL where the relationships between urban heat and air quality will be discussed.
7. Hydrology, focusing on droughts, floods, and water supply/quality issues, with contributions from Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers Ethan Coon, Saubhagya Rathore (SETx-UIFL).
8. Integration across subsurface-atmosphere-human-natural systems, with insights from Liv Haselbach (SETx-UIFL).
9. Data and software management, with UT-Austin and TACC researcher Will Mobley (SETx-UIFL).
10. Greenhouse gas emissions and biogeochemistry, featuring other UIFL researchers such as Ken Davis and Jiazhen Ling (BSEC) and Ted Schuur (SW-IFL).

The conference will also host several coordination breakout sessions that will include important topics such as community building, green infrastructure representations in hydrologic models, and greenhouse gas and pollutant inventories, among others. 

The event represents a vital opportunity for principal investigators from the UIFLs to engage in meaningful discussions around their research programs, their progress, and research challenges.

• May 22, 2024

  SETx-UIFL Summer Institute 2024

  

  The SETX-UIFL Summer Institute 2024 took place from May 14-16 in Beaumont, Texas, hosted by Lamar University. This exciting event brought together over 30 researchers and students from various fields.

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• April 22, 2024

  SETx-UIFL Spring Seminar Series 2024

  

  From January 26th – April 19th, 2024, SETx-UIFL successfully organized a biweekly seminar series featuring the work of our researchers. Seven seminars covered a wide range of topics corresponding to different themes in the SETx-UIFL project.

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• December 15, 2023

  SETx-UIFL Members Joining the AGU23

  

  SETx-UIFL members joined thousands of other scientists at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) annual meeting in San Francisco, CA.

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• October 13, 2023

  Southeast Texas Urban IFL 2023 Annual Meeting

  

  The 2nd Annual Meeting of Southeast Texas Urban IFL (SETx-UIFL) was hosted at Lamar University on October 8-10th. The annual meeting is where SETx-UIFL scientists and students gather to share the latest research updates and discuss collaboration ideas for the forthcoming years.

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• October 6, 2023

  Lamar University’s Center for Resiliency at the Tekoa Academy Tree Wrapping Ceremony

  

  On Friday, September 29th, Tekoa Academy hosts a brief tree wrapping ceremony with green, blue and white ribbons, signaling Tekoa’s green zone. Davon Chargois, Lamar University’s Grants Manager from the Center for Resiliency was invited to speak to the junior and senior classes at Tekoa Academy.

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• October 5, 2023

  SETx-UIFL Joins First PI Annual Meeting for Urban IFL projects

  

  Fifteen SETx-UIFL members joins 2023 Urban IFL PI meeting in Rockville, MD. This marked the first annual meeting for the four Urban IFL projects, including CROCUS, SETx-UIFL, BSEC, and SW-IFL.

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• September 27, 2023

  Fast Forward

  

  In an interview with Dr. Michelle Meyer, Texas A&M principal investigator and Equity team lead, the SETx-UIFL project is mentioned in Spirit, the Texas A&M Foundation Magazine.

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• September 11, 2023

  SETx-UIFL Team Meets with Community Members and Professionals in Southeast Texas

  

  Wednesday, September 6th marked a significant milestone as the first joint task force meeting was held in Beaumont with community members and professionals from the Beaumont-Port Arthur region.

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• June 18, 2023

  Climate Resilience on the Texas Gulf Coast: Science Rooted in Local Wisdom

  

  Source: The University of Texas at Austin

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• November 21, 2022

  ORNL Research Scientist Addresses Urban Challenges to Elementary Students

  

  On November 21st, 2022, Christa Brelsford, a SETx-UIFL research scientist presented “Topology is Amazing!”  to 120 3rd graders at Linden Elementary in Oak Ridge Tennessee about how she uses mathematical topology to address urban challenges.

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