Denise McKahn is a cross-disciplinary engineer who has studied environmental, mechanical, electrical, and chemical engineering through both research and formal coursework. She is dedicated to the advancement of renewable energy technologies through the design, modeling and control of dynamic and complex systems. Her recent work has focused on physics-based modeling and experimental validation of mass and thermal dynamics for electricity generation in fuel cells, solid product and syngas production with biomass torrefiers, and heating and cooling with geothermal heat pumps. Professor  McKahn deeply appreciates being grounded in a liberal arts context where a holistic engineering education can propel students to play critical roles in both engineering and the sciences in search of unique solutions to the unprecedented challenges our society will face in the years to come.