Leading on Climate-How WashU is advancing research, education, and partnerships

He is currently the co-director of the Solutions through Planetary Health Research (SPHERE) network in the Bursky School of Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis.

Giammar’s research focuses on chemical reactions that affect the fate and transport of heavy metals, radionuclides, and other inorganic constituents in natural and engineered aquatic systems. His recent work has investigated the removal of arsenic and chromium from drinking water, control of the corrosion of lead pipes, geologic carbon sequestration, and biogeochemical processes for remediation of uranium-contaminated sites. His research has been sponsored by the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, and the Water Research Foundation.

Konecky’s own research investigates how a warming and cooling planet can modify the global water cycle.

Her work focuses mainly on the global tropics, with current projects in Guatemala, Colombia, Peru, Brazil, India, and Uganda. Konecky is a recipient of a David and Lucile Packard Foundation Fellowship in Science and Engineering, an NSF CAREER award, the American Geophysical Union’s Nanne Weber Early Career Award, and the Washington University Arts & Sciences Dean’s Early-Career Faculty Research Award.

From 2013-2020, she was executive director of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, a state-wide environmental advocacy organization, and practiced public interest law in Missouri and Illinois. Navarro was a fellow with the Public Leaders for Inclusion Council in 2021 and has served on the Missouri Municipal League Board as well as a variety of other local, state, and national boards.

She teaches inter-disciplinary urban design studios and seminars on infrastructural urbanism, urban history and theory, and alternative sustainability metrics.

In 2023, she completed an infrastructure equity scorecard pilot project for the City of Los Angeles and a produce-recovery and distribution mapping project for non-profit Food Forward. Samuels was co-PI on Mobility For All By All, an interdisciplinary project aiming to increase the benefits of St. Louis’ MetroLink expansion for local residents living along the alignment. Her book, Infrastructural Optimism, is available now from Routledge.

Over his 15-year tenure, Valko has driven sector-leading emissions reductions through deep energy efficiency, utility system electrification, clean energy infrastructure, and fleet electrification. He also co-founded the Midwest Climate Collaborative, and played a key leadership role in developing the WashU Arboretum — an accredited level III arboretum and botanical garden integrated into the Danforth Campus that combines a biodiverse living collection with public education, research, and conservation. He is also the creator of Project Clean Grid, a climate-tech app that tracks real-time and forecast-grid emissions to optimize flexible energy loads and renewable siting.