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News + Events

CBE students, faculty, community members, and programs are often featured in local, national, and campus media. Learn about groundbreaking research and other accomplishments, and hear from faculty with expertise on issues impacting the built environments. Be sure to check our event listings for upcoming lectures, meetings, and more.


  • Mix Masters: Students Shaping Concrete’s Future

    March 6, 2024

    Two students in front of a concrete mixer

    Nestled in a former airplane hangar in the sprawling former Navy base at Magnuson Park, construction and engineering students stress-test recipes for concrete—one of the world’s most used substances.


  • CBE Professor Faces an Electrifying Challenge

    February 21, 2024

    A King County Metro battery-electric bus being charged at South Base Charging Facility.

    Department of Construction Management Professor Hyun Woo “Chris” Lee, King County Metro, and UW Mobility Innovation Center team up to advance billion-dollar bus electrification projects for zero-carbon emissions.


  • Tsunami preparedness in WA

    January 19, 2024

    Westport coastline

    CBE and the University of Washington have been working with Westport and their neighbors to help them face the threat of tsunamis head-on. | The Seattle Times


  • Bird-Friendly Design: Overcoming Building Barriers

    December 5, 2023

    A robin sitting in a bush

    Led by researcher Judy Bowes, The Bird Friendly Campus project aims to track bird-building collisions, provide bird-safe design tips, and raise awareness about the dangers of transparent glass to wildlife.


  • Crafting a path: Architecture youth programs

    November 30, 2023

    Student at the architecture camp

    During the summer, the University of Washington’s Continuum College Youth & Teen Programs gave high school students a glimpse into college through their architecture camp.


  • Support CBE students this Giving Tuesday

    November 27, 2023

    This Giving Tuesday, the College of Built Environments is calling on the community to support CBE students across all 5 departments.


  • Dean Renée Cheng on Sources of Energy, Research, and Making Equitable Spaces

    October 18, 2023

    Renee Cheng

    In her conversation with Amy Stone, Dean Cheng shares her unique career journey, shaped by family values and artistic influences, and her transition into the world of architecture, emphasizing the transformative impact of teaching and mentorship.


  • Connecting the coastline

    October 17, 2023

    Dan Abramson speaking to a crowd in a high school gymnasium

    How the UW is helping Westport prepare for a tsunami | UW For Washington


  • From the Dean: Welcome Back!

    September 21, 2023

    As we usher in another academic year at the College of Built Environments, I want to extend a warm welcome back to all our faculty, staff, and students.


  • Interested in serving as a mentor?

    September 21, 2023

    You can work one-on-one with a College of Built Environments student and help them grow professionally through career exploration, networking, and professional skill-building by signing up for our mentor program. This is an excellent opportunity to support the built environments community by sharing your advice and professional experience.


  • Preserving affordable housing across the nation: research spotlight on Vince Wang

    September 19, 2023

    New Runstad Department of Real Estate Assistant Professor Vince Wang is shedding light on the mechanisms of sustainable, affordable housing and opening doors for student researchers.


  • Carb talk: CBE’s Climate Solutions Community of Practice sparks interdisciplinary collaborations

    September 11, 2023

    Wildfire smoke from Washington, Oregon and California blanket the Pudget Sound Region in hazardous smoke

    Is there a way to break through knowledge barriers and foster climate change collaboration within and without CBE? Professor Kate Simonen and other faculty think they’ve found it: CBE’s new Climate Solutions Community of Practice (CoP), a group dedicated to generating climate solutions across disciplinary frameworks that encourages student, staff, and faculty participation.


  • [Re]Visioning the Ave: Students devise real-world strategies for a thriving, accessible neighborhood hub

    August 24, 2023

    A mural on the side of a building in the University District

    For several years, the U-District Partnership has sought to figure out what kinds of investments and interventions might help bring optimism back to the Ave. In this effort, UDP reached out to the College of Built Environments for assistance. Might there be a chance to get CBE students involved in devising some solutions?


  • Building a more just and beautiful future: CBE’s new faculty cohort makes strides on campus

    July 13, 2023

    Interior of Gould Hall

    The College of Built Environments at the University of Washington has big dreams. Faculty, staff, and students are tackling issues of social and environmental justice and climate change. They’re seeking out innovations in sustainability, breaking out of disciplinary silos, and forging new collaborations


  • Congratulations 2023 graduates!

    July 5, 2023

    Dean Cheng on stage at graduation

    Congratulations to this year's graduates! Our mission of advancing knowledge is embodied in and by the students who graduate each year and the community who supports them. We all have a lot to celebrate this year.


  • Eight honored with CBE Distinguished Faculty Award for Lifetime Achievement

    June 27, 2023

    gould hall

    We are pleased to announce the eight individuals who have been selected to receive the CBE Distinguished Faculty Award for Lifetime Achievement. “It is an honor to recognize these outstanding faculty for their inspiring leadership to students and colleagues alike,” said Renee Cheng, John and Rosalind Jacobi Family Endowed Dean of the College of Built…


  • CBE Celebrates 2023 Faculty & Staff Award Winners

    June 26, 2023

    People sitting at CBE graduation

    The CBE Faculty & Staff Awards recognize exemplary faculty and staff for their dedication and service to the CBE community. View the list of winners.


  • Beyond Seating: Benches Build Community

    June 23, 2023

    bench making

    Students began with individual projects using reclaimed materials like cardboard and sticks to learn about scale and structure. They then collaborated on a bench project, requiring planning, sketching, trial and error, and utilizing the Fabrication Lab for cutting and assembly.


  • Remembering Jon Runstad: A Philanthropist and Real Estate Visionary

    June 21, 2023

    Jon Runstad

    The College of Built Environments is deeply saddened by the loss of Jon Runstad '64, a prominent figure in the real estate industry and a dedicated philanthropist.


  • Gould Gallery showcases students’ work and the power of design

    June 14, 2023

    gould gallery

    Emerging elegantly from Gould Hall’s Brutalist gray concrete exterior, the College of Built Environments’ Gould Gallery features works of societal impact.


  • Finding Your Place: How unaffordable housing drives homelessness

    June 5, 2023

    Gregg Colburn, assistant professor of real estate, joined NPR's Marketplace Morning Report to discuss the common myths believed to be the primary drivers of homelessness versus the actually demonstrated linkages between housing demand and pricing despite the varied wealth of cities. | Marketplace Morning Report


  • Youth Perspectives on Disaster Planning project wins Population Health Initiative grant

    May 25, 2023

    Overhead view of the coastline

    Among the awarded projects was "Incorporating Youth Perspectives to Improve Disaster Planning: Piloting Drone-Based Photovoice to Explore Cultural Assets" whose investigators include UDP Associate Professor Daniel Abramson and UDP Masters' student Matias Korfmacher, in collaboration with researchers from DEOHS.


  • CBE awardees of climate focused Population Health Initiative grants

    May 25, 2023

    Birds eye view of campus

    CBE was well represented across the grant recipients of the Population Health Initiative, with four of the twelve projects including input from researchers in Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Urban Design and Planning, Real Estate, and Construction Management.


  • College of Built Environments Faculty and Student receive Husky Sustainability Awards 2023

    May 21, 2023

    husky sustainability awards

    The Husky Sustainability Awards recognize individuals and groups across all University of Washington campuses who lead the way for sustainability at the University of Washington. This is the 14th year awards have been given by the UW Environmental Stewardship Committee.


  • CBE welcomes Dr. Amos Darko to interdisciplinary faculty cohort

    May 11, 2023

    Dr. Amos Darko

    In pursuit of our vision for a more just and beautiful world, the College of Built Environments continues to implement an important part of our strategic framework: growing our capacity for collaborative interdisciplinary work with the goal of advancing climate solutions.