ITS-Davis Professor Deb Niemeier Elected as Member of National Academy of Engineering

UC Davis Engineering Professor Deb Niemeier has been elected as a member of the prestigious National Academy of Engineering (NAE).

Professor Niemeier, who serves on the ITS-Davis faculty, was one of two UC Davis professors in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering to receive the honor—“among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer,” noted NAE in its announcement.
Professor Niemeier was recognized for her work “developing groundbreaking tools to characterize the impact of transportation emissions on air quality and environmental justice.” On faculty at UC Davis since 1994, her work combines studies of vehicle emissions, air quality, transportation modeling and the impacts of air pollution on communities. Niemeier is founding director of the Sustainable Design Academy at UC Davis and has served as editor-in-chief of Transportation Research, Part A and Sustainable Cities and Society.

The two UC Davis NAE honorees, Professor Niemeier and Professor Ross Boulanger, will be feted at a March 20 reception hosted by the UC Davis College of Engineering. They bring the total of current or retired UC Davis faculty who are members of NAE to 13.

“The academy’s induction of professors Boulanger and Niemeier shines a much deserved spotlight on their phenomenal work to make the world a better place,” said Interim Chancellor Ralph J. Hexter. “Their achievements exemplify the university’s public service commitment at its best, with discoveries that help us better understand and mitigate the effects of life-threatening earthquakes and air pollution in California and beyond.”


Niemeier and Boulanger were among 84 new members and 22 foreign members elected by NAE. Elected members will be formally inducted at NAE’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 8, 2017.

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