Phillip Thompson is the Director of the Seattle University Center for Environmental Justice and Sustainability and is a professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He joined Seattle University in 1997, after receiving his PhD in Environmental Engineering from the University of Iowa. Dr. Thompson is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Washington and has been a principal engineer for Northwest Engineers, LLC since 2001 where he has consulted on a range of infrastructure projects.

Through his work with the Seattle University chapter of Engineers for a Sustainable World, he has completed over 20 international projects in Haiti, Thailand, Nicaragua, Peru and Zambia. He has also served as a reviewer for numerous environmental journals, the National Science Foundation, and as a consultant for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s Reinvent the Toilet Project.

Dr. Thompson served as Civil and Environmental Engineering Department Chair from 2006-2013. He received the 2015 Seattle University Alumni Association’s Distinguished Faculty Award and the 2011-2012 Father James McGoldrick Fellowship which is Seattle University’s highest faculty honor. He was also awarded the 2009-2010 Thomas J. Bannan endowed chair of engineering.

Topic: Adapting to Climate Change: Finding Hope in the Tragedy of the Commons