I have thoroughly enjoyed my first five months as director pro tem; being a part of the School of Sustainable Energy Engineering's (SEE) transformative journey has been exhilarating. There has been tremendous growth at SEE in terms of our student body, research outputs and overall reputation. Navigating through this growth requires systems thinking and collaborative strategies. It has been immensely rewarding for me to better understand the passion of the SEE community.

SEE had nothing short of a paramount year in 2023. The program received formal accreditation by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board, ensuring that students are on track to receiving their professional engineer (P.Eng.) license. Along with reaching this significant milestone, we have taken many steps to support the school’s growth and are currently in the process of recruiting three new tenure-track faculty positions in power electronics, energy storage and sustainable buildings. We are also developing a new, course-based master’s of engineering (M.Eng.) program, aiming for a Fall 2025 start.

In 2023, SEE was also able to accomplish many firsts, including hosting a public dialogue event for the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation. Our students also received recognition for their capstone projects, with teams being awarded the EGBC’s Think Green Student Award and the CAGBC’s Andy Kesteloo Award.

We are now prioritizing the creation of new initiatives for students that focuses on providing an environment for social interactions while learning and developing professional networks. We will be hosting our first graduate research conference in May, the “SEE CAR”, automotive design competition later in the year, and have plans to host an international conference in 2025 that aims to enrich our academic and research environment. Throughout the year, we will also be working to build our industrial networks by identifying new avenues for partnerships and continuing to work with our current partners on cutting-edge research, co-operative education experiences and capstone projects.

The primary focus of SEE is on enhancing student experience, strengthening our undergraduate program and creating a more welcoming space for students in our state-of-the-art building. We aim to take on a leadership role in defining the nascent sustainable energy engineering domain. In doing so, we anticipate the program will help identify the competencies needed to be a successful sustainable energy engineer. In practice, our students are equipped with the knowledge to make a positive change in society and help tackle global challenges.

Zafar Adeel, Ph.D., P.Eng.
Director pro tem and Professor of Professional Practice
School of Sustainable Energy Engineering

Learn more about the SEE program here>>

Welcome to the School of Sustainable Energy Engineering.  Established in 2019, the School is housed in a purpose-built expansion to SFU’s Surrey Campus, providing a state of the art immersive learning and research environment.  I am humbled and honoured to serve as the School’s Inaugural Director, and am deeply grateful to have worked alongside a team of extraordinary people in designing, developing, launching and expanding the School.

Our mission is to inspire and foster transformative innovations in energy systems that benefit society and the natural environment through outstanding interdisciplinary education, research, collaboration, and engagement amongst a diverse and equitable community.  This mission connects our students, staff and faculty members in pursuing a common vision.

The School’s academic programs include undergraduate and graduate degrees, which are both technically rigorous and fundamentally interdisciplinary.  A strong foundation in engineering is woven together with elements of policy, ecology, economics, and entrepreneurship that allow technological advance to be viewed through the economic, environmental, societal, and cultural lenses needed to arrive at truly sustainable solutions. 

Our faculty complement includes world leading experts and researchers in areas such as clean transportation, zero emissions buildings, advanced materials for energy systems, smart grid power distribution, and multi-scale energy systems modeling and simulation.  Our research is deeply collaborative and interdisciplinary, yielding fundamental knowledge with direct application to the profound challenge that we face as a global community in responding to climate change.

I encourage you explore our website to learn more about our extraordinary academic programs and exciting research.  We welcome all inquiries from prospective students, colleagues, and collaborators, and look forward to hearing from you.

Dr. Kevin Oldknow, P.Eng.
Director, School of Sustainable Energy Engineering (2019-2022)