Digging Deep, Thinking Blue: Duke Research Driving a Cleaner Future

Join Lori Bennear, Stanback Dean of the Nicholas School of the Environment, and Jerry Lynch, Vinik Dean of Engineering, in Washington, D.C., for an evening celebrating Duke’s distinctive cross-disciplinary collaboration and research as our schools address some of the most pressing challenges facing our planet.

Alumni, parents and guests will explore the work of the Critical Minerals Hub, led by Professors Leanne Gilbertson and Avner Vengosh. The Hub is building the science, policy, and technology foundation for a secure and sustainable clean-energy future by bringing together experts across engineering, earth sciences, and environmental policy. Central to this work is the development of a Critical Minerals Index—a real-time decision platform designed to guide industry leaders and policymakers across the full life cycle of critical minerals, from extraction to reuse.

The program will also highlight marine conservation research at the Duke University Marine Lab, where faculty Martin Brooke and Lee Ferguson demonstrate how engineering and environmental science intersect in real-world settings. By combining sensing technologies with field-based environmental research, their work helps measure pollution, track changes in water quality, and better understand how human activity affects marine ecosystems, turning complex science into actionable insight.

Together, these examples showcase the power of Duke’s interdisciplinary approach and the impact that collaboration across schools can achieve. We look forward to welcoming you for an evening of discovery, connection, and conversation.

Learn more and register here!