Rate My Professor Dibs Sarkar

Dibs Sarkar is a Professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Ocean Engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology, a position he has held since spring 2016. He also serves as the Founding Director of the Stevens Center for Sustainability since spring 2024, and Founding Director of the Sustainability Management MS and dual-degree MS-MBA programs since fall 2016. Prior to joining Stevens, Sarkar was Professor of Environmental Sciences and Founding Director of the Environmental Science and Management PhD Program at Montclair State University from summer 2008 to fall 2015. He held positions as Associate Professor and Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and Research at the University of Texas at San Antonio from 2004 to 2008, Assistant Professor there from 2000 to 2004, Research Scientist and Principal Investigator at the University of Florida's Department of Soil and Water Science from spring 1998 to summer 2000, and various teaching and research roles earlier. Sarkar earned his Ph.D. in Geochemistry from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville in 1997, M.S. in Geology from the University of Calcutta in 1991, and B.S. in Geology (with Physics and Mathematics minors) from the University of Calcutta in 1988.

Sarkar's research adopts a holistic, multidisciplinary framework combining geochemical, biological, and engineering principles to address sustainable environmental challenges. His specializations encompass the environmental fate and remediation of soil and water pollutants, development of green technologies, stormwater quality management, and human and ecological risk assessment. Ongoing projects include PFAS fate, transformation, and remediation in groundwater, soil, and stormwater; remediation and phytoextraction of metals such as lead and nickel in contaminated soils; and watershed-scale management efforts like lake restoration and green infrastructure. He has authored key books, including An Integrated Approach to Environmental Management (Wiley, 2016) with Datta, Mukherjee, and Hannigan, and Concepts and Applications in Environmental Geochemistry (Elsevier, 2007) with Datta and Hannigan, alongside over 200 journal articles and 300 technical abstracts. Sarkar exerts considerable influence as Founding Editor-in-Chief of Current Pollution Reports (Springer, since 2015), Founding Section Editor-in-Chief for Environmental Science at Applied Sciences (MDPI, since 2018), and Associate Editor for journals such as Environmental Technology and Innovation, Frontiers in Soil Science, and Environmental Geochemistry and Health. His accolades include Fellow of the Soil Science Society of America (2019), Fellow of the Geological Society of America (2011), Stevens Institute of Technology Research Excellence Award (2022), American Society of Civil Engineers North Jersey Educator of the Year (2025), and Master of Engineering (Honoris Causa, Stevens, 2025). Sarkar contributes to governance as a Member of the Stevens Board of Trustees, chairing sustainability committees and programs.