Abstract
<jats:p>The Graduate Program in Engineering and Environmental Sciences proudly launches its first book under the theme Contemporary Issues in Engineering and Environmental Sciences, challenging readers, in each chapter, to reflect on the many possibilities for managing environments and transforming raw materials while promoting environmental sustainability. We live in an era in which engineering and environmental sciences do not merely diagnose the impacts of human activity, but fundamentally contribute to safeguarding the survival and quality of life of future generations. This volume brings together a collection of studies that exemplify this mission, seamlessly navigating between technological innovation, resource management, and the rigorous monitoring of our ecosystems. Within these pages, readers will encounter a multidisciplinary and practice-oriented approach to urgent contemporary challenges. The book invites us to rethink the concept of “waste,” transforming environmental liabilities into valuable assets. It showcases ingenuity in the valorization of by-products, whether through the incorporation of glass powder to produce more sustainable concrete or through the conversion of biomass from invasive species, such as Annoni grass, into sources of reducing sugars for bioenergy production. [...]</jats:p>