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International Webinar Series

Next Webinar: Wednesday, March 4th, 2026, 9am ET

March 4: Dr. Hadas Mamane, Professor, Tel-Aviv University, Israel (https://mamanelab.sites.tau.ac.il/biography)

Title: People’s Water Data: Developing and Validating a Scalable Student-Led Methodology for Global Water Security

Bio: Professor Hadas Mamane is Head of the Environmental Engineering Program and the Water-Energy (WE) Lab at Tel Aviv University, Israel. She received her Ph.D. from Duke University, USA. Her research focuses on water and wastewater disinfection and oxidation, and on converting brine, textile, and plastic waste into valuable products using solar irradiation, UV-LEDs, ozone, photocatalysis, and nanomaterials. She is dedicated to developing decentralized, effective, and scalable point-of-use (POU) water treatment systems. Professor Mamane is also an Adjunct Faculty Member at IIT Madras, India.

April 1: Dr. Sujith Ravi (https://sites.temple.edu/ravi/)

May 6: Dr. Jeff Turner (https://turnerlab.tamucc.edu/)

Past Webinars: 

Speaker: Dr. Guangbin Li, Assistant Professor, UMD
Topic: Emerging Organic Contaminants in Water and Soil: Challenges and Sustainable Treatment Strategies
Speaker: Dr. Kevin Jean
Topic: The health co-benefits of climate change mitigation and adaptation policies
Dr. Danielle Delp, Postdoctoral Fellow, Rutgers University
Topic: Ending a legacy of pollution: Using bacteria to break down persistent dioxin and furan pollution in riverine sediments
Dr. Caitlin Proctor, Assistant Professor, Purdue University
Topic: Using Biofilms to Our Advantage Across Engineered Systems
Dr. Wei Liao, Professor at Michigan State University
Topic: Securing Agriculture in a Changing Climate - FEW Nexus Solutions for Global Sustainability
Dr. Stevo Lavrnic, Senior Assistant Professor, University of Bologna (Italy)
Topic: Water and wastewater management and reuse for sustainable agriculture
Dr. Mitchell Pavao-Zuckerman, Associate Professor, UMD Environmental Science and Technology
Topic: Green infrastructure as ecohydrologic and decision-making hotspots in urban social-ecological systems
Dr. Olufunke Cofie, Africa Director for Research Impact, International Water Management Institute
Topic: Harnessing Biocircular Economy Approaches for Food, Energy, and Water Security in Africa: Strengthening Community Resilience in a Changing Climate
Dr. Heather Amato, Assistant Professor, UMD GEOH
Topic: Animal waste management & antibiotic-resistant bacteria in subsistence farming households in Nepal
Dr. Joshua Gurtler, Lead Scientist at the USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Wyndmoor, PA
Topic: Biochar Application in Sustainable Agriculture: Research for Removing Salmonella and E. coli O157:H7 from Soil, Compost, Poultry Litter, and Irrigation Water
Dr. Jafaru M. Egieya, Assistant Research Scientist at the Texas A&M Energy Institute.
Topic: System Dynamics Modeling for Sustainable Urban Development in the City of Cape Town: A Food-Energy-Water Nexus Approach
Jonathan Deutsch, Professor and Vice Chair
Department of Food and Hospitality Management, Drexel University
Topic: Upcycled Food Opportunities and Consumer Acceptance
Dr. Ryan Blaustein, UMD Dept. of Nutrition and Food Science
Topic: Metagenomics and sampling methods to establish the fitness of environmental resources
Dr. Catherine Nakalembe, UMD Dept. of Geographical Sciences
Topic: Considerations for Artificial Intelligence and Earth Observation (AI-EO) for Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa
Farmer Chippy, Founder
Farmer Tiara, President and Manager
Topic: AgriHood Baltimore at Plantation Park Heights Urban Farm
Dr. Richard Friend
Associate Professor, University of York (UK)
Topic: Assessing vulnerability and building resilience through the lens of systemic risk and critical thresholds
Ariel Aviram, PhD Student
Geography Department at the Hebrew University
Topic: Examining the food–energy–water nexus across local scale scenarios using the red line approach
The Tanzania FEWture Team
Dr. Paul Turner, Associate Professor
University of Maryland School of Public Health
Topic: Agriculture, Experiential Education, and Public Health: FEW Nexus Opportunities in Tanzania
The Nepal FEWture Team
Dr. Biraj Man Karmacharya, Associate Professor
Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences
Topic: An Integrated Approach to Rural Health and Community Development through Livelihood Support: An Experience of Dhulikhel Hospital, Nepal
The Israel FEWture team
Dr. Clive Lipchin, Director
Center for Transboundary Water Management
Arava Institute for Environmental Studies
Topic: Decentralized Wastewater Management and Reuse in Bedouin and Palestinian Communities
The Maryland FEWture team
Jen Cotting, Director
Environmental Finance Center, University of Maryland
Topic: Advancing Sustainability at the Community Level
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