Wall Scholar Alumni Lunch: Water to Bricks

Speakers: Steven Hallam, Microbiology and Immunology and Wall Scholar 2016, and Joseph Dahmen, School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture and Wall Scholar 2016.

Abstract: Wall Scholar alumni Joe Dahmen and Steven Hallam are collaborating on a Wall Solutions Initiative grant from the Peter Wall Institute that investigates innovative approaches to biosolids produced from waste water treatment. Their project team created a composting toilet made of biodegradable mycelium biocomposite materials that would improve sanitation and contribute to ecosystems in and around refugee camps. Their innovation addresses a major humanitarian crisis in the camps, where inadequate sanitation infrastructure and limited resources combine with high population density to contribute to illness. The project won the top award at the Biodesign Challenge at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, and they are now working to produce a working prototype of the composting toilet to conduct further testing in the next year.

At this talk Joe and Steven will speak about the origins of their research project, and share their experience with interdisciplinary collaboration.  They will discuss how they brought their individual disciplinary perspectives to the project, and some of the challenges they confronted in their efforts to merge their areas of expertise.