UMD Grand Challenge Include Multiple ME Faculty

Faculty members at the University of Maryland’s (UMD) Department of Mechanical Engineering are leading and co-leading several interdisciplinary research projects that have been chosen for funding under Grand Challenges Grants 2.0, a university-wide program that brings together experts from multiple fields to collaborate on high-priority global concerns.

UMD is investing $15 million over three years across 11 projects selected for the program, the university announced on June 25.

Associate Professor and Clark Faculty Fellow Damena Agonafer.

Associate Professor and Clark Faculty Fellow Damena Agonafer is a Co-Principal Investigator (co-PI) on the project “Sustainable and Ethical AI Infrastructure,” which received one of two Impact Awards given as part of the program. Distinguished University Professor Eric Wachsman (materials science), director of the Maryland Energy Innovation Institute, is the Principal Investigator (PI); co-PIs include Paul Albertus (chemical and biomolecular engineering); Anand Patwardhan (School of Public Policy); Yueming Lucy Qiu (School of Public Policy); Wedad Elmaghraby (Smith School of Business); and Joshua Linn (agriculture and natural resource economics).

Associate Dean for Research and Kohloss Professor Jelena Srebric..

Professor Jelena Srebric, the A. James Clark School of Engineering’s Associate Dean for Research and Margaret G and Frederick H. Kohloss Chair at the mechanical engineering department, is co-PI on “The Air We Share, A Public Health Revolution for the 21st Century,” which received a Team Award under the program. The project is being led by Distinguished University Professor Donald Milton, a School of Public Policy faculty member who specializes in environmental health, global, environmental, and occupational health. Co-PIs include Kathleen McPhaul (global, environmental, and occupational health), Huang Lin (biostatistics), Maureen Cropper (economics), Anna Alberini (College of Agriculture and Natural Resources), and Distinguished University Professor Abba Gumel (mathematics).

Keystone Professor Teng Li; Assistant Professor Lianping Wu.

Keystone Professor Teng Li, meanwhile, is PI on “AI for Precision Cancer Treatment,” also a Team Award under the Grand Challenges program. Co-PIs include fellow mechanical engineering faculty member Lianping Wu and Xiaodi Wu from the department of computer science.

Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies Nikhil Chopra; Professor Miao Yu.

A third Team Award winner, “Sustainable Precision Aquaculture Network for Shellfish,” is being led by Professor Miao Yu (mechanical engineering/Institute for Systems Research). Fellow ME faculty member Nikhil Chopra is a co-PI on this interdisciplinary project, which also includes co-PIs Yang Tao (bioengineering), Hemendra Kumar (College of Agriculture and Natural Resources ), Matt Parker (College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences), and Don Webster (global, environmental, and occupational health).

Published July 13, 2026