Aspect recently welcomed Emily Rusen to our Seattle office and Kevin Ross to our Bellingham office. Here are Five Questions we asked to get to know them better.
Emily on the Skyline Loop trail at Mt. Rainier.
Emily Rusen, EIT, Staff Environmental Scientist
1. Where are you from? If you’re not from the Pacific Northwest, what brought you here?
I’m originally from Morristown, New Jersey, and spent a couple years in Troy, New York, while I was doing my bachelor’s degree. After I graduated, I moved out to Seattle for a job and have been slowly falling in love with the Pacific Northwest ever since.
2. What inspired you to pursue environmental engineering? What made you curious about it?
I think I’ve always been interested in learning more about how humans impact the environment. Hearing about the looming implications of climate change while growing up drove me towards the environmental field. I knew I made the right decision when I got to college and saw how passionate the professors in the environmental engineering department were about their research, plus they seemed a lot cooler than the other engineering professors (no offense, other engineers!). I think I was drawn to consulting because it provides exposure to a wide variety of projects and lets me feel like I’m positively contributing to communities around me.
3. What do you like best about your area of expertise? What excites you and keeps you motivated?
There’s so much change going on with emerging contaminants and remediation technologies, which keeps work interesting. I’m motivated by getting the chance to problem solve in the field and seeing sites slowly get cleaned up. It’s been pretty cool to have a job where you are consistently challenged and encouraged to learn with each new project.
4. What do you like to do when you aren’t working?
Most of my afterwork hours during the summertime are spent running or paddleboarding. I’m currently training for the Chicago Marathon coming up this October! I love alpine skiing during the winter, and I am hoping to get more into backcountry skiing as I spend more time in Washington.
5. If you had to choose a superpower, what would it be?
I would hands down choose teleportation as my superpower. I think it would be super beneficial for traveling long distances: avoiding time spent in the TSA line during holidays, cutting out time spent getting to the airport, increasing efficiency getting across the globe, and eliminating the carbon footprint I would have by traveling via planes. I can’t see a need for me to be able to lift super heavy things unless I suddenly transitioned to a life of crime fighting, so I’ll stick with teleportation.
Kevin Ross, Staff Engineer
1. Where are you from? If you’re not from the Pacific Northwest, what brought you here?
I grew up in southeast Pennsylvania, then moved to the front range of Colorado for school and fun; that was where I spent my adulthood until Aspect brought me here to Bellingham. Bellingham is a place I’ve visited in the past and always found enjoyable.
2. What inspired you to pursue engineering geology? What made you curious about it?
My sister and I spent loads of time outside exploring the woods of Pennsylvania, climbing rocks and trees, building rafts for our backyard creek, forts, and snowbank tunnels. I recall being particularly curious about these large boulders at one of our favorite local spots, Ringing Rocks Park, which led to an interest in geology. That interest expanded in high school, taking a geology class, and finding out that rock climbing was a real activity. I then pursued an undergraduate degree in Geology at the University of Colorado, switching to Geological Engineering at the Colorado School of Mines, because engineering fulfilled my practical and analytical brain.
3. What do you like best about your area of expertise? What excites you and keeps you motivated?
The best part of engineering geology is that no two projects are the same. Geology is forever evolving, and each project brings its own unique challenges. What excites me is seeing geologists with 20 years of experience be just as thrilled to explore a new site as someone with 5 years. The drive to apply a wealth of knowledge to a new geologic and geomorphic setting—it’s fascinating!
4. What do you like to do when you aren’t working?
Generally, any outdoor recreational activity, but top of the list is mountain biking, (it was no accident that I pursued Bellingham as a place to call home) tennis, eating substantial amounts of food, making my swanky pour over coffee (and talking grind settings and brew ratios), and apparently collecting dogs as my partner and I have 3.
5. Where in the world would you like to travel next?
Finale Ligure, Italy, to satisfy most of the things discussed in Question 4.