Dr. Michael Charles is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering at Cornell University, an Affiliate Faculty of the American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program, and a Faculty Fellow of the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability. He received his B.S. in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (CBE) from Cornell University and His M.S. and Ph.D. in CBE from The Ohio State University. His expertise involves developing computational sustainability frameworks that include dynamic ecological models. As a Diné (Navajo) scholar, he’s also dedicated to forming mutually respectful partnerships with Indigenous communities. His vision is to combine computational methods with community-centered relationships to translate his research into action. Along with his research, he works with the International Indigenous Peoples’ Forum on Climate Change to advocate for Indigenous rights, leadership, and self-determination within UN Climate Negotiations.

Lesedi Kgatla, Graduate Student, Biological and Environmental Engineering
Native to Polokwane, South Africa, Lesedi works at the intersection of matter, community, and environment. Her research seeks to explore atmospheric water harvesting modalities across form, scale and materiality, by developing environmentally responsive systems through computational strategies. Her research interests broadly include systems dynamics modeling in social food systems, water systems in agrophotovoltaics, and the design of decay. Prior to joining the Charles Research Group, Lesedi conducted research on atmospheric water generators and auxiliary systems, and worked in operations as Production Lead at Aqua Air. She holds a Master of Science in Water Resource Management and Bachelor of Science in Environmental Sciences from the University of Pretoria.

Parsa Khayatzadeh, Graduate Student, Systems Engineering
As a Ph.D. student in Systems Engineering at Cornell, Parsa works in a specific area of computational sustainability where systems engineering intersects with biological and environmental engineering. His current research at the lab uses Integrated Assessment Modelling in a way that provides policy-relevant insights to Indigenous communities. He earned his B.Sc. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Tehran in 2022. During his undergraduate studies, Parsa actively collaborated to raise awareness about Sustainable Development among Iranian students, holding various academic and executive roles. Notably, he spent two years as a board member of the Student Association of Industrial Engineering at UT (UTIESA) and served as the managing editor of the nationally awarded student journal, “Fankaav”. Now at Cornell, he looks forward to advancing computational sustainability through his research, exploring ways humanity can live a more sustainable, enjoyable, and meaningful life.

Ashira Mawji, Graduate Student, Biological and Environmental Engineering
Ashira is a Ph.D student researching how to integrate energy carriers into power systems to advance renewable energy usage and reduce carbon emissions. She holds a BA in Mathematics and Computer Science from Amherst College and spent her Junior year at the University of Oxford.

Pranati Patnam, Undergraduate Student, Environmental Engineering
Pranati, an undergraduate student studying Environmental Engineering from New Hyde Park, NY, is delighted to be working with this team. Her research revolves around standardizing social life cycle analysis frameworks in food production across local and national scales. Outside the lab, she is an active member of the Carbon Neutrality division on the Engineers for a Sustainable World project team, where she is working on building retrofitting prototypes for lighting and HVAC systems for large lecture halls among campus buildings. She is also a student environmental advocate for Cornell on Fire and sings with the Cornell University Chorus in her free time!

Peter Thais, Undergraduate Student, Biological and Environmental Engineering
Peter is a junior studying Biological Engineering in CALS from Hogansburg, NY. He is the National U.S. Student Representative of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society and the Co-President of its Cornell Chapter. He is a recipient of the Tribal Agriculture Fellowship, Tewaaraton Foundation Scholarship, and the Coca-Cola Scholarship. He was a keynote speaker at the 2019 Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) and the 2021 National Tribal Leadership Climate Change Summit. He was an IAC Natural Resources Career Development Intern with the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe Agriculture Department in the summer of 2022. He is also an American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program Student Ambassador and the Native American and Indigenous Mentorship Program Coordinator at Cornell. He was inducted into the McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program in his sophomore year which partly funded his research in the summer of 2023. He is a research assistant in the Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering in the Charles Lab studying the effects of dispossession on Indigenous food systems that benefitted Land Grant Universities.

Jeffrey Wang, Undergraduate Student, Biological and Environmental Engineering
Jeffrey Wang is an undergraduate student at Cornell University’s Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering from Beijing, China. He is pursuing a double major in Environmental Engineering and Information Science and a minor in Robotics. In high school, he was from the environmental group “Zero Waste” in Beijing Haidian International School. His research interest includes using computation models to analyze environmental issues and applying robotics or artificial intelligence to solve ecological issues.