Bavisha Kalyan
Assistant Professor, Civil Engineering
My research journey is guided by a commitment to equitable and participatory systems. It has stretched my environmental engineering training and required me to confront the past violent, unethical research on (not with) marginalized communities, limitations of community-engaged research. My research has prompted me to continuously reflect upon my privilege, power, and the shortcomings of my own positionality in the academic-community relationship dynamics. I aim to use a participatory action research (PAR) framework to address systemic environmental and social injustices collaboratively with those more affected. Through my research, I have evolved into a scholar-activist focused on co-creating solutions to environmental health disparities stemming from critical urban infrastructure. I am also particularly passionate about working with and supporting youth in the STEM education pipeline. As an educator, I aim to integrate these lessons into the civil and environmental engineering curriculum, fostering inclusiveness and diversity. I envision implementing community-engaged project-based classes, where academics and the public share knowledge-generating tasks, involving community partners in public problem-solving. Triangulating my research, teaching, and service through qualitative and quantitative methods will provide a comprehensive understanding of the impact of community-engaged STEM projects, paving the way for engineering research aligned with Indigenous communities. As a faculty member at the University of British Columbia, I aspire to create a thriving and inclusive environment that encourages imaginative engineering solutions.