Fatemeh Ganji

Fatemeh Ganji has always felt a deep-rooted aspiration to make the world a better place. While pursuing her bachelor’s degree in civil engineering in Iran, with role models of famous builders in her mind, Ganji was using her construction skills to build a better world. But soon, she rerouted her career in construction into a new direction: saving the environment. Ganji began her master’s degree at Tehran University in Iran, focusing her research on climate change. Now she pursues a doctorate degree here at

Iowa State University in the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, working with assistant professor Lu Liu

“My main goal in civil engineering was to work in construction, to build bridges and buildings,” Ganji said. “But then, I realized that in this century, our main problem now is climate change. So I changed my focus from structural engineering to water resources engineering and working on climate change.” Now, Ganji is studying the effects of climate change, specifically how to make water more accessible for communities.

Whatever path she goes down, Ganji says that through it all, she wants to protect our world and the people in it.

“My goals are constantly changing as the world that we live in keeps changing,” Ganji said. “But what I do know is that in the future I want my research to result in making a difference in the world and making an impact.”