Callie Babbitt is an
Associate Professor in the Golisano Institute for Sustainability at Rochester
Institute of Technology, where she conducts research to proactively quantify
and minimize environmental impacts of emerging technologies. Callie’s
research group creates new methods and models in the field of industrial
ecology that are inspired by fundamental concepts in ecological systems. They
apply these models to study sustainability challenges and solutions for
consumer electronics, lithium-ion batteries, electric vehicles, and
nanomaterials.
Callie also collaborates widely on life cycle assessment
studies related to the food-energy-water nexus, critical minerals, biofuels,
waste management systems, and renewable energy technologies. She translates
this research into courses at RIT in Sustainability, Architecture, and
Industrial Design and into informal education programs at the K-12 level.
Her collaboration with Rochester-area schools and Women in Engineering at RIT
aims to increase the number of female students who pursue science, engineering,
and sustainability degrees and careers. These efforts have been
recognized by national and international academic and research communities. In
2013, Callie was awarded the Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program
Award by the National Science Foundation, and in 2010, she received the
AT&T Technology and Environment Award for her research and teaching efforts
in sustainability.