Jonisha Aubain of MIE and Timothy Onuh of ChE Receive Prestigious Switzer Environmental Fellowships
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Ph.D. candidates Jonisha Aubain of the UMass Amherst Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (MIE) Department and Timothy Onuh of the Chemical Engineering (ChE) Department are two of 20 graduate students from universities around the U.S. to receive a 2025 Switzer Environmental Fellowship. The fellowship, which is the Robert & Patricia Switzer Foundation’s “core strategy for identifying and nurturing environmental leaders,” includes a cash award, leadership training, and opportunities for ongoing professional development and other grants throughout a fellow’s career.
“Once selected,” as the Switzer Foundation says, “fellows become part of the Switzer Network, an engaged and supportive community that allows fellows to connect with each other, continue their professional and leadership development, and increase their impact as environmental leaders. Switzer Fellowship alumni are also eligible for the foundation’s other grant programs, which are designed to offer a spectrum of support throughout a fellow’s career.”
Aubain focuses on offshore renewable energy while studying with her advisor, Professors Erin Baker of the MIE department.
As Aubain explains, “Being born and raised in the U.S. Virgin Islands has provided me with a deep-rooted passion for environmental conservation for my home and locations like it.”
According to Aubain, small-island developing states such as the Virgin Islands suffer a unique economic and environmental disadvantage, which makes them extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, the financial burdens associated with storms, and all the ill effects of colonialism. While pursuing her B.S. in Physics from the University of the Virgin Islands, Aubain witnessed two category 5 hurricanes, Irma and Maria, which devastated her home and many other islands throughout the Caribbean.
In that context, Aubain’s research investigates the design, construction, and techno-economic analysis of tidal-energy technology for site-specific application in isolated island communities. As she says, “The goal of this research is to increase technical opportunity for enhancing local energy systems with emphasis on community involvement and independence. My research interests include marine energy, energy transition, energy resiliency, Caribbean-energy infrastructure, and energy equity.”
Aubain is also an ELEVATE Fellow with the UMass Energy Transition Institute, a graduate training and research program focusing on technical, equity, and climate challenges in the process of energy transition. Much of her work in this regard is on the experimental design and construction of a reference tidal turbine.
Onuh, who is originally from Nigeria, earned his B.S. in Chemical Engineering at Ahmadu Bello University in Nigeria.
Onuh’s dissertation research focuses on improving the sustainability and efficiency of micro-and-nanoparticle contaminant removal from wastewater-treatment systems. His notable research achievements involve developing models that aid in the design of wastewater systems that better predict the capture and removal of contaminants from waste streams. In turn, this mitigates the removal of these contaminants from the receiving environments, ultimately safeguarding public health.
Onuh received the National Science Foundation Advancing Careers in Academics with Diversity Education and Mentorship in Engineering (ACADEME) Fellowship in 2025, the University of Massachusetts Chemical Engineering Fellowship in 2025, the Education USA Opportunity Funds Program Scholarship in 2021, and is currently a student participant in the Biotechnology Traineeship Program, a collaboration between the National Institutes of Health and UMass Amherst.
Outside the lab, Onuh actively advocates for evidence-based science policy. In Nigeria he interned at a World-Bank-funded research center communicating recommendations to influential government stakeholders and generating high-quality, evidence-based data to inform policymakers about the state of solid minerals in Nigeria. Onuh was recently selected to represent UMass Amherst at the American Association for the Advancement of Science Catalyzing Advocacy in Science and Engineering Workshop on Capitol Hill, where he engaged directly with national policymakers and advocated for science and engineering priorities.
Onuh says that he is “looking forward to the Switzer Fellowship as an opportunity to accelerate the impact of [his] research by engaging with mission-driven professionals passionate about water equity and environmental sustainability and justice.” (August 2025)