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Pedro J. Alvarez WaTER Institute Director NEWT Center Director (Photo by Jeff Fitlow/Rice University)
Pedro J.J. Alvarez is the George R. Brown Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Rice University, where he serves as founding Director of the NSF Engineering Research Center on Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT) and the newly launched Rice WaTER Institute.
Alvarez serves also on the board of directors of the Houston Endowment Inc., which is a private foundation to improve quality of life for the residents of greater Houston.
His research interests include environmental implications and applications of nanotechnology, bioremediation, fate and transport of toxic chemicals, water footprint of biofuels, water treatment and reuse, and antibiotic resistance control. Professor Alvarez received the B. Eng. Degree in Civil Engineering from McGill University and MS and Ph.D. degrees in Environmental Engineering from the University of Michigan. He is the 2012 Clarke Prize laureate for outstanding research in water science and technology, and also won the AAEES Grand Prize for Excellence in Environmental Engineering and Science. Past honors include a Collegiate Excellence in Teaching Award, President of the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors (AEESP), the Perry McCarty AEESP Founders’ Award for Outstanding Contributions to Environmental Engineering Education and Practice, the AEESP Frontiers in Research Award, the WEF McKee Medal for Groundwater Protection, the SERDP cleanup project of the year award, the Brown and Caldwell Lifetime Achievement Award for Site Remediation, the ASCE Freese Award, and various best paper awards with his students.
He is an Executive Editor of Environmental Science and Technology and previously served on the scientific advisory board of the EPA and of the advisory committee of the NSF Engineering Directorate. Prof. Alvarez was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for outstanding contributions to the practice and pedagogy of bioremediation and environmental nanotechnology. International achievements include election to the Chinese Academy of Engineering and receiving an Outstanding Achievement Award in Environmental Chemistry from the Chinese Chemical Society.