Take Five

with Kristen Hughes

What element of your work gives you the most satisfaction? Working with a group of people and creating opportunities for synergy. What I mean by synergy is projects that can address multiple goals: reduction, farm prosperity, nutrient and energy efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions reductions, community health and farmland conservation. I love creative problem solving and working with people who have the influence and resources to get the job done. But to be creative effectively, you also have to be practical and knowledgeable. All the effort I put in to learning engineering principals has definitely paid off.

What do you do to stay current in your field and to find inspiration for new ideas? I attend conferences like the ASABE animal agriculture air and water quality conference (Broomfield, CO, September, 2007) whenever I can. It's critical to my position to keep abreast of what is going on around the country, so I can see what opportunities there are for farmers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Conferences that ASABE and other organizations host are a great way to network and share information about what worked and didn't work so that we can all build on each other’s efforts. There is no need for any of us to be operating in a vacuum.

Have you recently enjoyed any "good reads" that you're recommending to your colleagues? From a professional perspective, I’ve been very much enjoying reading the following:

1. Dynamic Aquaria, by Walter Adey and Karen Loveland, 2008 – this book talks about algal systems that can be used to produce 35 times more biodiesel per acre than soybeans, and that can help clean waters as well.
2. The International Plant Nutrition Institute’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Cropping Systems and the Influence of Fertilizer Management, (Snyder, Bruulsema and Jensen, 2007) is a great review of how we can reduce agricultural emissions of greenhouse gases.
3. This isn’t new, but I also recommend books by John Todd, like From Eco-Cities to Living Machines. He’s truly an inspiration (you can also check out his website); and lastly,
4. Metcalf and Eddy’s Wastewater Engineering is a veritable bible for anyone interested in manure or wastewater treatment systems. Reading this book will help you filter out the crazy ideas from the sound ones. I refer to it at least once a month, so even though I’ve had it for years, it’s still a recent read.

If you have your PE license, tell us why you obtained it and how it has benefited your career. I don’t have my PE license yet – but it’s on the list of things I’d like to do in the future! Since I’m not actively involved in engineering design, I’m not truly in need of it; but it is one of the most prestigious designations you can have as an engineer.

Anything else you'd like to add? The world population is over 6 billion and growing and by 2025, population is predicted to increase by almost 30%. Humans are placing unprecedented pressure on the earth’s ecosystem. We cannot continue to operate the way we have in the past. We must address how we are to continue producing food, and now energy, from agricultural feedstocks for a growing population without destroying our water resources and polluting the air. Global climate change means that we will need to incorporate biological processes for sequestering carbon into almost all agricultural and industrial production systems. The ecosystem is a complicated creature and we need professionals who understand biological as well as engineering processes to help us develop systems for food production and industry that are environmentally sustainable as well as profitable. Professionals with training in both engineering and environmental sciences are in an ideal position to make a tremendous difference in the quality of life for people around the world and are needed now more than ever. If you want a job you will love and where you can really make a difference, consider a degree in biological or agricultural engineering.