Research

Colleen Hammelman, an associate professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Geographical Sciences, was selected as UNC Charlotte’s nominee for the 2025 Governor James E. Holshouser, Jr. Award for Excellence in Public Service. The nomination recognizes Hammelman’s years of dedicated service. Since joining the University in 2017, she has advanced community-engaged research and teaching […]

Five UNC Charlotte faculty members have been named to the 2026 class of Senior Members of the National Academy of Inventors, a recognition honoring academic inventors whose work has made a measurable impact through patents, commercialization and mentorship. The honorees represent disciplines across the University’s research enterprise:

Niner Engineer Felix Fiifi Ekuful has been selected as the winner of a 2026 international student paper competition organized by ASHRAE, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers. This organization recognizes outstanding student research in the field of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration.  Last semester, graduate student Ekuful submitted his master’s […]

What are the necessary ingredients that make it possible for individuals and communities to thrive in a city or region? What are the barriers? And how can we build a Charlotte region where everyone has a good life?   Over the next year and a half, with support from The Gambrell Foundation, ten UNC Charlotte faculty […]

Rishi Misra’s excitement is contagious. When he gets going about one of his passions, be it advanced computational biology techniques or the importance of scientific communication, his eyes light up as his enthusiasm spreads to his audience through each animated anecdote and every bit of eager exposition. Graduating in December 2025 with a M.S. in […]

Patented nanomaterial technology developed at UNC Charlotte could soon improve the quality of drinking water.  Jordan Poler, Ph.D., has successfully passed filtration testing with his water purification system, paving the way for large-scale production on filters that remove forever chemicals and other contaminants from water. 

On her first trip to the United States, when she was still a graduate student in her native Poland, Maja Godlewska spent the summer touring America’s national parks. Afterwards, her paintings of actual and imaginary landscapes became her thesis project and launched a lifetime of considering the sublime in nature and our sometimes fraught engagement with […]

Professor of Architecture Kyoung Hee Kim began developing microalgae-filled building façade systems years ago, prompted by an environmental science class in graduate school. Knowing algae’s ability to sequester carbon and improve air quality as well as potential uses as food or energy sources, she began to design window installations in which microalgae could grow. The algae’s greens and blues […]

Chideraa Ndubuisi ’25 MPH is driven to improve human health. Through research — and an unquenchable appetite for learning everything he can about medicine, public health and environmental systems — he is exploring, analyzing and drawing conclusions about the levels of microplastics and halogenated organics, particularly brominated flame retardants, in municipal wastewater treatment processes. To […]

UNC Charlotte’s efforts to build an energy innovation hub for the Carolinas continue to gain national momentum. The University’s Carolinas Engine for Grid Modernization has been named one of 15 finalists in the U.S. National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Regional Innovation Engines competition, advancing to a full site visit from more than 300 initial applicants. The NSF Engines program supports regional […]