The Tufts Institute of the Environment (TIE) is an interdisciplinary institute that hosts the Sustainable Water Management program (SWM) and the Environmental Research Fellowship program. The faculty and students of the TIE are concerned with research, scholarship, education, and civic engagement in the areas of health, climate change, food and water, new technologies, human rights, energy, and security. Focus on food and water is clearly linked to food systems, while other areas of focus like climate change and human rights also play important roles in food systems transformation.
In February 2021, Provost Nadine Aubry launched the Task Force for Energy and Environment to identify major areas of research, scholarship, education, and civic engagement where Tufts can make a significant impact on climate change and the environment. Interdisciplinary programs, centers, and institutes like the TIE make Tufts a uniquely positioned organization to carry out this work. The TIE is a place where faculty and students from otherwise disconnected fields can come together to face the challenges facing our food systems. Read more about the Provost’s Task Force and its findings after its first milestone here.
The SWM program offers a Master of Science, in which students can study areas such as water diplomacy, infrastructure, and hygiene. An interdisciplinary program, faculty from the Friedman, Tisch, and Fletcher Schools, as well as Schools of Medicine and Engineering, participate in research with and eduction of students in the program. The M.S. in SWM prepares students to be leaders in water rights, diplomacy, health, and crisis preparedness. More information about the SWM program can be found here. Contact someone from the SWM program here.
The Environmental Research Fellowship program represents students of many schools at Tufts and connects students with the network and resources that the TIE offers. Fellowship students answer some of the most pressing and interesting research topics and questions around the world in the areas of environmental health and food systems. Research questions of the current cohort (2021-22) include:
“The End of Agriculture: Analyzing the Risk for Agricultural Land Desertification in the Contiguous United States”
“Do bees bet-hedge against a variable environment?”
“An optogenetic and environmentally friendly approach for diabetic management”
“Comparative Analysis of School Food Local Purchasing Incentive Programs”
“Investigating the effects of nutrient dynamics on marine algae density at coastal waterways in Juneau, Alaska”
Find out more about the Environmental Research Fellowship program here.