Portable Bioremediation Technologies for Urban Farming and Environmental Justice

This research proposal addresses the environmental and health challenges posed by extreme heat and soil and air pollution in Philadelphia, particularly affecting vulnerable communities. The proposal aims to develop portable fungi-plant living brick systems that support greenery, bioremediation, and urban agriculture. These systems are designed to remediate soils, capture carbon, and augment the green canopy, ultimately mitigating the adverse impacts of climate change and environmental injustice.

The project will involve scaling up fabrication and deploying SimbioBrick in Fishtown, Philadelphia, as soil bioremediating pavement and vertical food farming systems. The project will collaborate with soil toxicology teams to identify deployment sites and collect sustainable agriculture data.

This grant is made possible by the Goldsmith Research Fund, a gift from Carl H. Goldsmith (W ‘88).

Laia Mogas-Soldevila

Assistant Professor of Architecture, Weitzman School

Laia Mogas-Soldevila is an Assistant Professor of Graduate Architecture and Director of DumoLab Research at the Stuart Weitzman School of Design, University of Pennsylvania.

Ji Yoon Bae

Architecture PhD Student, Weitzman School

Ji Yoon Bae is a Ph.D. in architecture student at the Weitzman School of Design, University of Pennsylvania. His interdisciplinary work examines research methodologies that develop and evaluate environmental performance-driven architectural components.

Rachel Ou

Undergraduate Student, SAS

Rachel Ou is an undergradaute student in the School of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania.

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