Cassandra Thiel

Cassandra Thiel serves as Assistant Professor at New York University's Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service with a joint appointment in the Department of Population Health at NYU Langone School of Medicine, bridging engineering and public health to advance sustainable healthcare systems through rigorous environmental analysis.

Her academic foundation includes a PhD in Civil Engineering with specialization in Sustainable Healthcare and Green Buildings from the University of Pittsburgh, where her doctoral work established the methodological basis for healthcare life cycle assessments.

Thiel's research program systematically quantifies environmental inefficiencies across medical specialties using life cycle assessment (LCA) and industrial ecology frameworks. She focuses on optimizing hospital operations, surgical workflows, and medical supply chains to reduce carbon footprints and waste streams while maintaining clinical quality. Her work spans ophthalmology, oncology, radiology, and surgical disciplines with particular emphasis on practical interventions for resource efficiency in high-volume procedures like cataract surgery and endoscopy.

Analysis of her extensive publication portfolio reveals three dominant research trajectories: 1) Carbon footprinting of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures across medical specialties, 2) Waste stream characterization and reduction strategies for single-use medical devices, and 3) Policy-relevant comparisons between reusable and disposable medical equipment. These studies consistently demonstrate significant environmental improvement opportunities through supply chain optimization and procedural modifications.

Her scientific recognition includes:

• Fulbright-Nehru Academic and Professional Excellence fellowship (2014-2015) supporting collaborative research at Aravind Eye Hospitals in India

Thiel has secured research funding through competitive fellowships and institutional partnerships, notably conducting comparative environmental assessments of cataract surgeries across US and Indian healthcare settings during her Fulbright tenure. Her current projects include clinical trials of waste-reduction interventions in hand surgery with orthopedic teams at the University of Pittsburgh and developing standardized auditing tools for sustainable surgical practices. She actively translates research findings into actionable hospital sustainability programs through industry partnerships.

Her collaborative network spans global healthcare institutions including Aravind Eye Hospitals (India), University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and multiple US academic medical centers, facilitating cross-border implementation of sustainable healthcare innovations through multidisciplinary teams of engineers, clinicians, and policy experts.