Brown and Caldwell advances research and innovation, elevates Dr. da Silva to director

WALNUT CREEK, Calif., Aug. 1, 2024 – Brown and Caldwell (BC) announces the promotion of Dr. Allegra da Silva to director of Research & Innovation (R&I) as the firm continues to advance research and technical innovation in the water and environment sector.

Brown and Caldwell’s R&I program is an industry-leading program that advances applied science and accelerates innovation. Over the past five years, the program has sponsored 200 projects with over 100 clients.

As director of R&I, Dr. da Silva will be responsible for advancing BC’s R&I strategy, including acceleration and application of innovation in collaboration with the firm’s Technology and Innovation Leadership Team. She is committed to ensuring that Brown and Caldwell is well-positioned to address our clients’ greatest challenges with leading-edge, integrated solutions.

“Dr. da Silva is fully dedicated to integrating our best research and innovation into everything we do at BC. She brings a wealth of knowledge, enthusiasm, and strategic thinking to this role. I’m very excited for BCers, our research partners, and our clients to experience her leadership firsthand.”
Brown and Caldwell Chief Technical Officer Wendy Broley

Dr. da Silva brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her new leadership role with more than two decades of experience in environmental engineering consulting and research including:

• U.S. Agency for International Development
• EPA Guidelines for Water Reuse, technical editor
• WateReuse Colorado, president
• The Water Environment Federation (WEF) blue-ribbon panel of wastewater and public health experts, vice-chair 

Since joining the firm in 2018, Dr. da Silva has served as a technical advisor on more than 30 BC projects, including the Environmental Investigation for Emerging Contaminants (EIEC) in Honolulu; the Recycled Water Program in Boise, Idaho; and various PFAS-focused projects across the country. She also has overseen BC’s portfolio of Water Research Foundation (WRF) projects and has served on the WRF Research & Innovation Strategy Committee, and the Diversity and Inclusion Committee.

Dr. da Silva is engaged in national regulatory forums to influence policy around direct potable reuse (DPR), ambient water quality criteria, and PFAS management. Her passion for working at the intersection of science and policy is evident in her contributions as a technical author for the 2012 U.S. EPA Guidelines for Water Reuse, the 2017 U.S. EPA Potable Reuse Compendium, and the 2017 WEF Water Reuse Roadmap.

A licensed professional engineer based in Colorado, Dr. da Silva holds a doctorate and master’s degree in environmental engineering from Yale University and a bachelor’s in chemical engineering from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. She is based in Brown and Caldwell’s Denver, Colorado, office.

About Brown and Caldwell
Headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, Brown and Caldwell is a full-service environmental engineering and construction services firm with 50 offices and over 2,100 professionals across North America and the Pacific. For more than 75 years, our creative solutions have helped municipalities, private industry, and government agencies successfully overcome their most challenging water and environmental obstacles. As an employee-owned company, Brown and Caldwell is passionate about exceeding our clients’ expectations and making a difference for our employees, our communities, and our environment. For more information, visit www.brownandcaldwell.com