Zachary Schaad Successfully Defends his MS Thesis!

On Monday, April 6th, Zachary Schaad successfully defended his Master’s thesis! As a candidate for the M.S. in Civil Engineering (Global Engineering), Zach has been an important member of the Mortenson Center for Global Engineering and Resilience and our research group.

His thesis, “Exploring Pathways for Humanitarian Engineering: Distinguishing Traditional, Contemporary, and Aspirational Approaches,” examined how the field of humanitarian engineering is evolving. Drawing on interviews with 43 participants from the 2025 IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference and follow-up conversations, Zach explored how practitioners are moving beyond top-down neoliberal approaches toward more reflective, collaborative, and context-aware ways of working.

At the same time, his research highlights the tensions people face as they try to align these emerging approaches with the institutions and broader systems they work within. Ultimately, his work challenges the field to rethink long-standing assumptions about expertise, progress, and development.

Congratulations to Zach on a thoughtful and impactful thesis!