Environmental Science and Design Research Institute

The Environmental Science and Design Research Institute fosters innovative, interdisciplinary research at the intersection of natural, human and built systems. Our mission is to generate new knowledge, develop practical solutions and create transformative designs that address pressing environmental challenges—locally, regionally and globally.

We champion research and creative activities grounded in scientific methods and design thinking. ESDRI brings together students, faculty and community partners to explore the complex relationships among biological, social, cultural and economic systems. These dynamics shape the availability of essential resources, support biodiversity and influence human health and well-being.

Students: The institute aims to build research skills in students, in order to cultivate well-rounded, critical thinking professionals.  ESDRI recognizes the professional and personal importance of students having foundational research or creative experiences, professional skills, and environmental knowledge, which is facilitated through a variety of workshops, speakers, forums, special events, socials, one-on-one guidance, and more.  The institute supports undergraduates through its Fellows Program, in hopes of mentoring a new generation of scholars. ESDRI supports graduate students through its Graduate Student Research Awards. All students are encouraged to share their work at the ESDRI Research Showcase each Spring. 

View Current ESDRI Fellows

Faculty: ESDRI provides many opportunities for faculty to advance their research and facilitates multidisciplinary collaborations, procuring intramural and extramural funding, and working with qualified student researchers.  The institute engages a broad range of talented scientists, designers, and practitioners, spanning many academic disciplines, fields, and programs.  The institute proudly hosts an annual Sustainability Forum, with an ever-evolving theme, which draws from KSU faculty, students, and many of our community partners.

Academic units represented within ESDRI include:

• Aeronautics and Engineering
• Applied and Technical Studies
• Architecture and Environmental Design
• Art
• Biological Sciences
• Chemistry and Biochemistry
• Communication and Information
• Earth Sciences
• English
• Fashion
• Geography
• Peace and Conflict Studies
• Political Science
• Public Health
• Recreation, Park and Tourism Management
• Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies

View ESDRI-affiliated Faculty Members
 

By empowering environmental research, the institute aims to foster change by drawing from robust, well-informed science and design or extrapolating on the research ourselves.  ESDRI encourages students, faculty, and the greater community to understand and leverage the interacting geological, biological, human, economical, cultural, and social systems around us.  These overlapping systems impact and regulate the availability of resources (e.g. pure water, clean air, and food), sustain diversity of life on Earth, promote well-being, and affect all of us in our daily life. 

Environmental Science and Design Research Institute/We acknowledge that the lands of Kent State University were the previous homes of people who were removed from this area without their consent by the colonial practices of the United States government. Before removal, these groups created networks that extended from Wyoming to the Florida Coast and Appalachia and to the northern reaches of Lake Superior. These societies included people of the Shawnee, Seneca-Cayuga, Delaware, Wyandots, Ottawa and Miami. We honor their lives – past, present, and future – and strive to move beyond remembrance toward reflection and responsibility, through honest accounts of the past and the development of cultural knowledge and community.