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inquiry in service of solutions

battling the tragedy of the commonplace

 

careful engineering • human integration

uncompromising analysis • curious people

I’m Tami Bond, a professor at Colorado State University. I do research on human environments & teach in Mechanical Engineering.

[she/her OK; ze/zir if I’d choose anew]

statement of purpose

opportunities

My research is about making meaningful differences in complex systems that integrate humans, energy, built environment, and natural environment, especially through air quality. I look for missed problems and challenging connections. Most of my endeavors are launched by grappling with the question: “If we know so much, why are many things still broken?”

To understand how this philosophy manifests in research, you should probably just look at the projects below.

Tami <dot> Bond <at> colostate <dot> edu

…for inquiries about grad research in my group

current projects 

SAPPHIRES explores bringing clean air to homes through the idea of systemic intervention. For success, we have to understand people, their homes, the environment, and how they work together. The result: Systemic, Anthro-centric Packages for Protecting Households In Realistic Exposure Situations. Funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation under the LEAP-HI program. 

R.E.S.P.E.C.T. is all about looking forward to a more inclusive world: Realism, Equity, and Salience in Projections of Energy-Coupled Transitions. Spanning the methodological gamut from personal interviews to data fusion, we explore how a kaleidoscope of people might experience major drives toward clean energy as they affect the residential built environment. Funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation under Growing Convergence Research.

P2A – Pyrolysis to atmosphere. There’s a lot of research on pyrolysis. There’s a lot of research on wood smoke in the atmosphere. Why don’t we know how pyrolysis affects the atmosphere?  We’re working on it.

The emPOWER Cooperative has been running in Nepal since 2016. We started asking why so many resource-delivery programs were failures. Where does any program begin, who owns it, and whose choice does it remove? We introduce training in personal agency, and community exercises on energy services, at the decision and planning stages.

I run Airborne Connections, a Research Experiences for Undergraduates site that welcomes 10 students for 10 weeks every summer. Each student works with a different advisor. Applications for Summer 2024 open in January ’24.

coalitions

CSU has an amazing concentration of faculty with interests in air quality, climate, health, and reducing inequities. Come to grad school here.

SPHERE is where the indoor-environment, multidisciplinary collaboration started in 2016. Partners are still actively collaborating on projects. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we put some time into developing resources for people to keep safe at home [English | Spanish]

what is the “tragedy of the commonplace”?

Because novelty and cleverness are fascinating, the artifacts that people most frequently encounter are often the least remarked upon. These ignored aspects of life might, overall, influence one’s well-being far more than conspicuous events.   ~my definition.

NOT the same as the Tragedy of the Commons, but the math has the same characteristics.