Dean Chahim

Dean Chahim is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies at New York University, specializing in the intersections of engineering, political power, and urban environmental justice. He holds a PhD in Anthropology from Stanford University and dual bachelor’s degrees in International Development and Civil Engineering from the University of Washington. His research examines how engineering practices perpetuate environmental injustices, particularly in Mexico City’s flood control systems, and explores pathways to reconfigure engineering for social equity. His current book project, Governing Disaster, investigates how engineering enables the governance of disasters to sustain urban growth. Chahim has taught at the University of Texas at El Paso and Princeton University, where he was a Princeton-Mellon Fellow. His work is funded by major foundations including the Mellon Foundation and the Social Science Research Council.

Chahim’s research interests span urban ecology, science and technology studies, and environmental history. He has published in American Ethnologist, Antipode, and Desacatos, and engages public audiences through media outlets like The Washington Post and Logic Magazine. He collaborates on digital humanities projects, such as Las Huellas del Agua, mapping Mexico City’s flood dynamics. Chahim teaches courses on environmental justice, disaster governance, and the political economy of urban infrastructure, emphasizing interdisciplinary and critical approaches to addressing systemic inequalities.