News

Five new students at Waterloo Engineering are starting their academic careers backed by $100,000 scholarships from a prestigious national organization.

Software engineering students Saptarshi Bhattacherya and Kushal Mujral, mechatronics engineering student Shanaya Barretto, Aung Khant Min of computer engineering and Dina Orucevic of systems design engineering are among 10 campus-wide winners of 2021 Schulich Leader Scholarships.

Two researchers are accelerating their postdoctoral work at Waterloo Engineering backed by a fellowship launched last year.

Michelle Liu and Allie Kennington were thrilled when Waterloo Engineering introduced a senior position intended to ensure all students feel respected and empowered to pursue their aspirations. 

They both feel the new role of associate dean of outreach, equity and diversity will make a difference to the Faculty’s 2SLGBTQ+ and other marginalized communities. 

“It’s definitely a step in the right direction,” says Liu, who holds undergraduate and master’s degrees in Civil Engineering from Waterloo.

A geological engineering professor at Waterloo Engineering is co-author of new research that will help mining companies better understand the impacts of mine-waste disasters known as tailings flows.

Stephen Evans and other researchers created a database as part of a study that provides the first global picture of the frequency, behaviours and impacts of rapid downstream movements of mine waste following failures of tailings impoundments.

Two recent Waterloo Engineering graduates were named national finalists in a prestigious design contest this week for an idea that began taking shape in a first-year class.

Anneke van Heuven (BASc ’21) and Elias Trouyet (BASc ’21) were just starting the nanotechnology engineering program when they learned that the chemicals in most existing flame retardant materials can cause long-term health effects including cancer.

The findings of a new study highlight a need for widespread use of better face masks and the importance of good ventilation to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 indoors.

Waterloo mechanical engineering researchers performed experiments using a mannequin to simulate a seated person breathing in a large room.

The studies showed a significant buildup over time of aerosol droplets – exhaled droplets so tiny they remain suspended and travel through the air – despite the use of common cloth and blue surgical masks.

A systems design engineering doctoral candidate has used his biomedical engineering background to develop technology to accurately track COVID-19 vaccine doses at clinics. 

Ryan Tennant, who holds undergraduate and master's degrees in systems design engineering from Waterloo, designed an app to "help alleviate the stress of end-of-day doses – to ensure that there are fewer or no doses that go unused.”  

Professor Emeritus Roger Green, who died on August 11, is remembered as an expert in bridge design and a highly engaging instructor with a great sense of humour and an unrivalled level of enthusiasm for his field of expertise.

As wildfires continue to burn across the country this summer, a civil and environmental engineering professor, provides her expert opinion on what causes them and their long-term effects on air quality and the health of Canadians.

Rebecca Saari, who studies the consequences of climate change and climate policy on human health and environmental inequality, responds to common questions about Canadian wildfires and what needs to be done to prevent them from happening. 

Waterloo Engineering alumnus Andrew D’Souza (BASc ’08, systems design engineering) got an early start as an entrepreneur.

He delivered newspapers, mowed lawns and walked dogs for his neighbours as a boy, then moved up to part-time jobs to save for university so he wouldn’t rack up debt.

Flash forward 13 years since he earned his degree and D’Souza, whose family immigrated to Canada from India, is now the co-founder and CEO of Clearco, a Toronto-based company that has invested $2.2 billion in thousands of e-commerce companies.