Welcome to Environmental Engineering at the University of Waterloo

Environmental Engineers work at the interface between human systems and the broader natural world. We have dual responsibilities to design systems that improve the well-being of humans and the health and resilience of the natural systems on which we depend.

Environmental engineers play a vital role in designing and managing traditional systems that address long-standing issues like sanitation, flooding, air pollution, and waste management, while also developing innovative solutions for emerging challenges such as microplastic pollution, ecosystem restoration, carbon reduction, and circular economies. To stay ahead of future problems, they must improve monitoring and modeling of both natural and engineered systems, enabling proactive responses before crises arise. As climate patterns shift and ecosystems evolve, engineers must rethink conventional approaches and help society rebalance its relationship with the natural world to prepare for a future that looks very different from the past.