The��Aqlan Lab��team, in the J.B. Speed School of Engineering Department of Industrial Engineering, recently wrapped up its second summer hosting an intensive internship program��aimed at engaging undergraduate and high school students in community-focused projects. Funded by the National Science Foundation, this dynamic program involved 21 interns working on six projects over an eight-week period. The initiative, led by, associate professor of industrial engineering,��focuses on improving educational environments to bolster the regional STEM workforce and effect positive changes in the Louisville Metro community.��

“The second summer of the program went exceedingly well this year,” Aqlan said. “Moving forward, we hope to continue to grow the program, connect with even more community members and make a profound impact on the Louisville Metro.”��

Notably, this program collaborates with the University of Notre Dame, creating a synergy that goes beyond football rivalries. Together, they’ve formed a, aimed at revitalizing Midwest cities by retaining local talent and encouraging research-driven community engagement. The ultimate goal of the project is to establish an interconnected network of STEM education initiatives to benefit the regional workforce.����

The impact of the 2023 projects was profound, addressing various local challenges such as food justice, walkability improvement in Downtown Louisville, waterway cleanup, virtual reality applications and the preservation of native species. Throughout the internship, students were exposed to professional development workshops, including design thinking, networking, diversity, and time management.����

The diverse group of interns, hailing from various institutions, collected and analyzed data to develop practical solutions for their respective projects, subsequently presenting these ideas to the community. This program not only equips the next generation of STEM professionals with valuable skills but also instills a strong sense of civic responsibility and community engagement.����

“The CEEEM Internship was the best experience, and I couldn’t be more grateful for all that I learned through the program,” shares Ella Swigler, a 2023 CEEEM intern. “This opportunity allowed me to design a research project, work with very supportive team mentors, and meet some incredible community members in my field of study. Thanks to the CEEEM Internship, I have discovered my research passion for urban waterways- and even greater, I have gained the skills needed to apply scientific study to community change.”��

As UofL and Notre Dame take the field, they also stand united in their commitment to creating a brighter future for their communities. The collaboration internship program not only equips the next generation of STEM professionals with valuable skills but also instills a strong sense of civic responsibility and community engagement. Together, they aim to foster an environment that encourages participants to remain engaged in the Louisville Metro and other Midwest cities, ultimately leaving a lasting positive impact on the regions they serve. Through this program, students are gaining hands-on experience and contributing to the betterment of their communities while preparing for future careers.��

By Danielle Henson

The Envirome Institute has secured a 30-year lease with Louisville Metro Government to use Founders Square as an outdoor laboratory to research innovative ideas in urban greening. Patrick Piuma, director of the Envirome Institute’s Urban Design Studio, will oversee a project to intensely plant Founders Square with native plant and tree species while creating an accessible, inviting and functional public space for anyone to enjoy. The project at Founders Square will build on the Envirome Institute’s groundbreaking work with the , which is examining the scientific link between nature and human health.

“The Trager Micro-Forest Project is a transformative project connecting people with nature, starting in the heart of our city,” said Michael Trager-Kusman. “The members of our family are honored to support learning about the impact of scientifically planned and planted green spaces in the city we love.”

The project will provide an opportunity for UofL researchers in multiple disciplines to work with members of the community and other organizations to track and measure changes in human health and well-being and to study the project’s impact of biodiversity, micro-climates, economic development and public safety. The learning from this project can be used to inform the way city planners integrate nature into urban environments everywhere.

“This is an exceptional project for UofL’s Envirome Institute at the New Vision of Health Campus, and we are delighted to have the Trager family’s generous support as we embark on new fields of inquiry into the impact of the built environment on human health,” said Lori Stewart Gonzalez, interim president of UofL.

“The Envirome Institute is committed to the health and vitality of downtown Louisville, which is why we’re establishing our New Vision of Health Campus downtown at Fifth Street and Muhammad Ali Boulevard,” said Aruni Bhatnagar, director of the Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute. “The Trager Micro-Forest Project is not simply a beautification project. It is a scientific project, which will be the first of its kind in our region of the country.”

“The Trager Micro-Forest Project and the Envirome Institute’s New Vision of Health campus are catalysts for positive momentum during this pivotal time for downtown Louisville. These initiatives complement our commitment to a sustainable future, a commitment that requires vision and action. We expect these initiatives will spur additional economic development in the area while adding well-planned and maintained green spaces that make our downtown area more attractive for those who live, work and visit there. Thank you to the Trager family for their support of the Envirome Institute’s innovative and forward-thinking project,” said Mayor Greg Fischer.

In the past, Louisville’s downtown was a vibrant hub of activity, from shopping and industry to entertainment and culture. The Trager Micro-Forest Project is intended to excite and engage the community while changing perceptions of downtown and promoting a greener and healthier city.

Initial work on the Trager Micro-Forest Project is already underway. Researchers are analyzing current park usage and taking air and surface temperature measurements in Founders Square and surrounding properties, and they have completed an inventory of the existing trees. This past summer, they used ground-penetrating radar to peer beneath the surface of Founders Square to identify any possible underground obstacles. Community members will be invited to participate in activities on site and provide input into the project over the next few months, with plantings to follow.

Over the next six months, the , part of the Department of Urban and Public Affairs, will explore how the city of Louisville can serve as a living laboratory for research, education and experimentation at the Healthful City Design Studio at 429 W. Muhammad Ali Blvd. This temporary pop-up location, an addition to the current UDS location in the Portland neighborhood, offers a space in which community members can dive into issues and opportunities specific to the heart of downtown.

“This is an exciting opportunity to pull together the threads of urban planning and design, public health, equity, ecology, engineering, economics and more to focus on how these overlapping facets of the city can not only solve problems we face now, but also position our downtown and city for the future,” said UDS Director Patrick Piuma. “I believe we have the talented minds throughout our community to examine these aspects of our city, and our hope is to find ways to unlock the creativity needed to become a leader in this space.”

To kick off the pop-up, Piuma, alongside colleague and entrepreneur Sylvanus Hudson, will develop a series of events, workshops, demonstration projects and more to bring together professionals and the local community to explore how the built environment affects health and what it means to be a healthy city. The team will be joined by collaborators from other UofL departments, Louisville Metro Government, the University of Kentucky and related organizations and individuals as the direction of the initiative takes shape.

Early events and activities will be focused on outreach and education, getting people together to share ideas about what a healthy city looks like and collaborative demonstration projects to communicate the importance of cooling urban heat islands, improving air and water quality, planting trees and other vegetation, public safety, welcoming environments and the health benefits of reintroducing nature into urban environments.

“The pandemic has revealed the importance of the built environment on health and how valuable safe and healthy places are in promoting public health and resilience,” said Aruni Bhatnagar, director of the Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute.

The goal of the effort will be to create a unique urban laboratory for innovation where UofL becomes a stronger partner with the community, public officials and others to develop novel solutions to the challenges our city faces. This initiative is an offshoot of the Downtown Revitalization Team’s Action Plan that calls for making downtown more vibrant, clean, safe and welcoming.

“It is critical for Louisville to invest in its natural and built environments to improve residents’ health, as well as be a competitive city in the 21^st Century,” said Jeff O’Brien, co-chief of Louisville Forward. “We can design our cities to prepare us for the changing climate and improve our health, all while making the city a more vibrant and equitable place.”

The UDS initiative will draw on past programs such as the Sustainable City Series’ public forums that raised awareness of sustainable practices and has led to place-making projects such as and .

The Healthful City Design Studio opens Monday, Nov. 8.

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City and university officials, along with building owner/developer Gill Holland, ceremonially snipped the red ribbon March 5 to welcome guests to the newly renovated space. Fine arts and archaeology students have settled in this semester to make a home for programs that outgrew Belknap Campus facilities.

“We’re super excited to be here,” Dean Kimberly Kempf-Leonard told the crowd in thanking people who contributed to the years-long effort. “This is a proud moment for many here.”

UofL is leasing most of the space, about 43,000 square feet, from the Rowan Downstream LLC group that includes Holland, noted for revitalization efforts in Portland and NuLu sections of the city. The building retains some elements that reflect its former uses over time including steamer trunk factory, floor-covering distribution business, storage warehouse and senior nutrition center.

“When you walk in here, you go ‘Wow,’” said Mayor Greg Fischer, also joined by Metro Councilwoman Barbara Sexton Smith at the ceremony.

Now its second-floor mezzanine is rimmed with graduate student and faculty studios and offices associated with the UofL Hite Arts Institute’s master of fine arts degree in studio arts and design, an MFA program that began in 2014. Below that are exhibition spaces and larger studios for media including ceramics, glass, wood, metal, printmaking and digital art.

“You can feel the creative energy. You can see the amazing art,” Holland said.

In another wing, the university’s collections of hundreds of thousands of artifacts have been relocated to climate-controlled rooms to better protect them for the future and future study. Archaeology students and faculty from the anthropology department will use six new laboratories – some for instruction and some for sample preparation and artifact cleaning – for their research and teaching. Planners there expect to do more outreach to interest and interact with the neighborhood residents, particularly schoolchildren, according to Thomas Jennings, an assistant professor working in the renovated facility.

Other UofL students benefiting soon from the Portland space will be from the urban and public affairs department. The Urban Design Studio, which researches and raises community awareness of better, more sustainable design practices, has relocated there from its former leased downtown space. Studio director Patrick Piuma echoed the hope for more collaboration across the academic disciplines thanks to the new proximity and envisioned possibilities for public art or neighborhood projects tackled together.

“I’ve always wanted to integrate more with others,” he said. “Now it’s an opportunity to interact on a daily basis.”

At the ribbon-cutting, UofL President Neeli Bendapudi commended those who had the vision to see potential for the university’s presence in the Portland space. “This is a university that I promise you is going places.”

“This is a town-gown relationship at its best,” she said.

Many people at the ribbon-cutting remained for the first large public event in the space – Bendapudi’s lecture on “The Liberal Arts in a Global Economy.” Her talk was the 14th annual Phi Beta Kappa lecture, which the College of Arts and Sciences offers with the Phi Beta Kappa Association of Kentuckiana.

Check out highlights from the ribbon-cutting event below.