Amy E. Childress

Amy Childress is Dean’s Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director of the ReWater Center (Center for Water Reuse and Resource Recovery) at the University of Southern California. Her research and scholarly interests are in the areas of wastewater reuse and desalination to address the global challenge of freshwater scarcity. Most recently, Prof. Childress has investigated membrane processes for innovative solutions to contaminant and energy challenges; conceptual analyses of synergistic configurations of shared/integrated facilities; interfacial and mechanical aspects of membrane materials; and brine reduction and energy recovery. She has led multi-disciplinary projects and has received awards for research innovation, publication impact, technology education, and mentoring. Most recently, Prof. Childress received the 2024 Clarke Prize. She is a past president of the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors (AEESP), a Fulbright US scholar, and recently stepped down from serving on the US EPA Science Advisory Board. Prof. Childress chairs and serves on expert panels for potable reuse and seawater desalination projects in the United States and abroad. She is co-editor of Desalination, co-editor-in-chief of Water Reuse, and serves on the advisory boards of other technical journals.