Research at CERE

As a student at the Center for Environmental Research and Education (CERE), you'll dive into researching urgent environmental issues of our time. Explore areas like greenhouse gas emissions and sustainability, hydrogeology and water resource management, control of air and water pollution, waste management, conservation biology, environmental policy, shale gas extraction and more.

Discover ongoing research initiatives at the Center for Environmental Research and Education and explore opportunities for how to get involved.

Campus Produce Garden

In the Fall of 2020, the Center for Environmental Science & Education installed a produce garden on Academic Walk next to Laval House. This project was initiated by an undergraduate student research project to increase biodiversity, reduce stormwater runoff, and combat food apartheid in the region. Students started seedlings and maintain the garden over the summer months. Rainwater is collected in rain barrels and used to water the garden. All produce is donated to local organizations.

The garden needs more volunteers! Email envscience@duq.edu to get involved.

Murphy's Bottom Ecological Project

The Murphy's Bottom Ecological Project is a habitat restoration project that Duquesne University has undertaken in South Buffalo Township, Armstrong County, Pennsylvania. Duquesne University's initiative is to effectively restore the property to its full environmental potential. Plan objectives include:

  • Maximizing biodiversity at Murphy's Bottom site
  • Preserving and enhancing the habitat for species of special concern
  • Focusing on enhancing aquatic habitat
  • Managing / extirpating invasive species
  • Removing debris and structures from past mining/processing activity
  • Reflecting the input of a wide array of stakeholders
  • Serving as a model for future habitat enhancement projects
  • Facilitating further study at the site

Wingfield Pines

The Wingfield Pines Abandoned Mine Drainage site is located in Upper St. Clair, Allegheny County. Since 2007, the University has been working with the Allegheny Land Trust to return the 80-acre former golf course and swim club in Upper St. Clair and South Fayette townships into a public recreation area, remediating the abandoned mine drainage into Chartiers Creek.

Passive drainage systems use gravity to slowly drive the water through five settling ponds, plus a wetland. The water moves at a slow enough pace to maximize contact with atmospheric oxygen, which induces iron precipitation. It takes approximately 48 hours for the water to flow from its entry point in Pond 1 to the outflow point at the end of the wetland area. The 8-acre network of settlement ponds and wetlands eliminates 99 percent of the iron oxide from entering Chartiers Creek.

3 Rivers QUEST

3 Rivers QUEST (Quality Useful Environmental Study Teams) is a comprehensive water quality monitoring and reporting program, sampling all three of Pittsburgh's rivers, their headwaters, and their tributaries. The Program was started by the West Virginia Water Research Institute at West Virginia University in 2009 sampling the Monongahela and has since expanded. Sampling has taken place over the past few years, with Duquesne joining the program in 2013.


International Research

Lower Dover Field Station - Belize

The new Belize Tropical Field Station will provide a safe and secure location for students to learn in the field and conduct research alongside faculty. Here Duquesne students and faculty will have an opportunity to collaborate with the Institute of Professional Environmental Practice (IPEP), universities and colleges in Belize, local teachers, government officials, and representatives of NGOs. Undergraduate and graduate students are able to conduct research at this site through the Maymester program. 

Limpopo Resilience Lab - Southern Africa

The Limpopo Resilience Lab is supported by Water Q2: Understanding Water Quality and Quantity in the Limpopo Basin. This collaborative effort by Duquesne University, University of Venda, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is supported by a generous grant from the United States Agency for International Development, Award 72067419FA00001. This project is supported from March 2019 to March 2022 and is currently headed by Dr. David Kahler. 

Sustainability Research

The Center for Environmental Research and Education conducts regular campus sustainability reports including Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventories and the STARS Report, facilitated by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. 

Undergraduate Research Program

The Undergraduate Research Program provides students with essential research experience for a career in the sciences or science-related fields. This program offers students the opportunity to experience science through the successes and failures of scientific research. Students are encouraged to start research as early as their freshman year, allowing them to gain as much experience as possible.