About

Sr. Damien Marie Savino is a Franciscan Sister of the Eucharist and serves as the Dean of Science and Sustainability at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Before starting at Aquinas College in 2016, she was Associate Professor and Chair of the Environmental Science and Studies Department at the University of St. Thomas, Houston. Savino received her PhD in civil (environmental) engineering from The Catholic University of America, and holds an MS in Soil and Plant Science from the University of Connecticut and an MA in theology from The Catholic University of America.  Her research interests include theology and science, ecology and theology, ecological restoration, and resilience theory. 

Her scientific research focused on environmental remediation of soil and groundwater contamination, the environmental impacts of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and the application of resilience theory to ecosystem health. For the past ten years, she has become increasingly involved in interdisciplinary projects and has lectured and written widely on Laudato Si’ and integral ecology, as well as on science and faith, ecology and theology, and ecological restoration and health.