Environmental Engineering

From Soil to Climate Solutions: Berhe Leads Sierra Nevada Research Institute into its Next Chapter

September 11, 2025

When Professor Asmeret Asefaw Berhe arrived at UC Merced in 2009, she and her husband, Professor Teamrat Ghezzehei, were leaving major research institutions to join a brand-new campus in California’s Central Valley. It was a leap of faith — one made easier by the Sierra Nevada Research...

Plan to Attend Innovate to Grow or Volunteer as a Judge

Now is the time to register to attend this year's Innovate to Grow (I2G) competition and see some of the 66 student engineering teams present their solutions to real-world engineering...

Finalists Compete for Grad Slam Champion Title April 8

UC Merced’s Graduate Division will host its annual Grad Slam competition on April 8, with graduate scholars presenting their research on topics ranging from the effects of cannabidiol (CBD...

Most ranked graduate programs see progress in the 2023 U.S. News Best Graduate Schools rankings.

UC Merced Grad Programs See Uptick in U.S. News Rankings

Twelve of UC Merced’s graduate programs and one of its schools are among the best in the country in the U.S. News & World Report 2023 Best Graduate Schools rankings, according to results...

Campus Researchers, State Leaders Talk Secure Water Future for the Valley

Last year, UC Merced received the largest research grant in its history. The $10 million Secure Water Future (SWF) award, led by Professor Joshua Viers in cooperation with other UC campuses and other...

Graduate students stand before the Beginnings sculpture.

Grad Students Invited to UC Merced’s First ‘Nanoengineering Environmental Sensors’ Incubator Program

Graduate students who are passionate about their research, concerned about the environment and eager to reach across disciplinary boundaries are invited to apply for a three-week summer program in...

Last Year’s Drought Cost Ag Industry More Than $1 Billion, Thousands of Jobs, New Analysis Shows

The 2021 drought directly cost the California agriculture sector about $1.1 billion and nearly 8,750 full- and part-time jobs, according to estimates in a new analysis led by UC Merced researchers...

Celebrate National Engineers Week with the Nine UC Engineering Schools and Programs

Founded by the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) in 1951, National Engineers Week is dedicated to ensuring a diverse and well-educated future engineering workforce by increasing...

Hotter, Drier Nights Mean More Runaway Fires

Thanks to the warming climate, the potential for more severe nighttime wildfires is increasing, and warmer nights mean firefighters will not be able to rely on cooler temperatures to help them get a...

Solar-paneled Canals Getting a Test Run in San Joaquin Valley

A research project conducted by a UC Merced graduate student is becoming a reality as the Turlock Irrigation District (TID) approved piloting the first-in-the-nation construction of solar panels over...