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CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING
Student Profile: Brian Stephens-Hotopp

Brian Stephens-Hotopp

Brian Stephens-Hotopp grew up in the Midwest, loving the outdoors. Through scouting, YMCA, and family outings, he developed a passion for the environment.

When it came time to look at colleges, he was attracted to CU-Boulder because it offered something a lot of other schools didn"t—a degree in environmental engineering.

As an undergraduate, Brian has found opportunities to work on a variety of environmental issues, including toxic leaching, municipal water treatment, and water claims in the Rio Grande basin.

Working with the Jemez Pueblo was a "really interesting experience," he says. "To be able to go down and collect data to use in designing and recommending a full-scale solution to an environmental problem was very satisfying."

With so many real-world experiences, including serving as a project leader, Brian expects to find work as a consultant after graduation. Eventually, he plans to return to graduate school to learn more about renewable energy.

 "I think the demand for environmental engineers is definitely going to increase because in 20 years, we"re not going to be able to depend on our energy resources. The amount of pollutants is going to grow, and we"re not going to be able to keep up what we"re doing. With the developing world going through an industrial revolution, there also will be more of a need to share technologies globally."