AI for adaptation

At the core and intersection of all civil and environmental engineering research at Carnegie Mellon is fostering resilience for our infrastructure, our natural systems, and our communities. In the face of climate change and heightening climate crises, engineers are using the tools at their disposal to build resilient systems that can withstand and adapt to an unpredictable future. 

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) presents both opportunities and risks in this capacity, enabling researchers to unlock unprecedented data and insights, but not without consequence. A new course in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering highlights the positive and negative impacts AI presents for the energy system and broader climate mitigation efforts. Taught by Costa Samaras, professor of civil and environmental engineering and director of the Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation, students enrolled in “AI Engineering and Policy for Climate Mitigation and Resilience” learn how responsible use of AI can protect the public, advance innovation, maximize its benefits, and minimize its risks.

“It's essential for students to understand the impacts of designs, algorithms, and decisions, on broader systems and on how engineers can guide emissions reductions and respond to the impacts of climate change,” said Samaras. “I hope this course provides an opportunity for students to build a systems perspective on the intersection of energy, climate mitigation, and resilience.”

Carnegie Mellon has always been a leader in educating engineers to improve the resilience of our infrastructure systems.

Costa Samaras, Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Through analysis of emerging AI applications for climate mitigation and adaptation, students will be equipped with the skills to act as decision-makers in this space, constructing policy briefs with technical recommendations that harness AI’s potential while addressing challenges such as energy consumption, data privacy, and system reliability. The course is the quintessential embodiment of the department’s commitment to resilience, as seen in faculty projects across all research focus areas and in the new Center for Engineering Resilience and Climate Adaptation, an initiative dedicated solely to building resilient solutions for climate adaptation. 

“Civil and Environmental Engineering at Carnegie Mellon has always been a leader in educating engineers to improve the resilience of our infrastructure systems such as energy, water, and transportation,” said Samaras. “Understanding how to guide outcomes that are good for the climate and good for society is another way our curriculum can help our graduates be leaders at the forefront of engineering.”