Sara intends to pursue a career in environmental remediation to create clean and safe environments for society. 

Sara Bolzman is a rising environmental engineer determined to make a difference in the world through her career. Sara’s passion for environmental engineering grew in the two years after high school when she worked, saved, and traveled to fourteen countries where she saw amazing, innovative environmental projects — from waste-to-energy in Copenhagen to direct wastewater reuse in Singapore. The experience motivated Sara to return to school and help the planet by using her problem-solving skills to create tangible solutions. She enrolled at Delta Community College, where she maintained a 4.0, and two years later transferred to the University of Michigan. She is now earning her bachelor’s degree in environmental engineering.

At U-M, Sara is conducting resource recovery research in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering under the mentorship of Dr. Joshua Jack. Her current research focuses on microbial electrosynthesis, a process that aims to directly mitigate climate change by combining waste CO2 and renewable energy to create value-added fuels and chemicals. Going forward, Sara aims to expand this research by working with U-M’s Global CO2 Initiative. Sara’s professors at U-M describe her as “highly self-motivated, exceptionally bright, and an extremely quick learner” and recognize her “unwavering commitment to making a positive impact on society and the environment.”

During her time at U-M, Sara has also gained remediation experience through a National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates program project at New Mexico State University, which sought to remediate selenium-contaminated waters using physicochemical and biological methods, and an internship at Geosyntec Consultants in New Jersey, where she worked on multiple Superfund sites to remediate contaminated sediments, soils, and groundwater. Following graduation, Sara intends to pursue a career in environmental remediation to create clean and safe environments for society. 

CEW+ commends Sara’s commitment to making an impact through environmental engineering and names her a Grace A. and James D. Bruce Community Engagement Scholar.