Vahedifard awarded Senior Scholar Fellowship

Professor and Berger Chair Farshid Vahedifard of Tufts’ Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering recently received the 2024 Senior Scholar Fellowship from Nanjing University in China. Part of Nanjing University’s International Fellowship Initiative, the Senior Scholar Fellowship supports exceptional scholars from outside China to visit the university on a short-term basis and conduct joint academic activities with students and faculty at the university in the spirit of international collaboration. Each year, only three internationally recognized scholars are awarded the prestigious fellowship. 

Awardees are nominated by faculty members at Nanjing University and are chosen by the university’s higher administration through a competitive selection process. Vahedifard has a longstanding relationship with faculty members at Nanjing University and was selected for his academic achievements. Among his accomplishments, Vahedifard is the Lead of Resilient and Equitable Infrastructure with the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH). He is a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the recipient of several awards, including the Norman Medal, MSU Annual Research Award and the MS ASCE Engineer of the Year Award.

During his visit, Vahedifard met with faculty and graduate students in the School of Earth Sciences and Engineering and discussed areas of mutual interest and potential collaborations. He delivered a lecture titled "Advancing Climate-Resilient and Equitable Infrastructure: The Role of Geotechnical Engineering in a Transdisciplinary Framework", which drew on his work in climate resilient equitable infrastructure. 

The extreme climate geoengineering research group commended Vahedifard for his timely lecture and thoughtful engagement with students and faculty at the university. On their website, members of the research group wrote, “Together, we aim to contribute our collective wisdom and expertise to the global discourse on extreme climate phenomena, furthering our shared understanding and capability to tackle these pressing challenges.” 

Learn more about Professor and Berger Chair Farshid Vahedifard.