Rate My Professor Ahmad Bin Thaneya

Ahmad Bin Thaneya is an Assistant Professor and Emerging Scholar of Civil and Urban Engineering at New York University Abu Dhabi, within the Division of Engineering. An Emirati raised in Dubai, he earned his PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in 2023. His doctoral dissertation focused on developing infrastructure optimization models to reduce human exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) through traffic assignment strategies. Prior to his appointment at NYU Abu Dhabi, Bin Thaneya completed a postdoctoral scholarship at UC Berkeley, where he continued advancing systems-level approaches to environmental challenges.

Bin Thaneya's research specializations include infrastructure systems, air quality engineering, climate change mitigation, human exposure assessment, and life-cycle assessment. He integrates computational systems modeling to support environmental and public health goals, such as optimizing infrastructure management for reduced emissions and improved air quality. His efforts have contributed to projects funded by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E). Notable publications from his work encompass "Exploring Regional Reduction Pathways for Human Exposure to Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Using a Traffic Assignment Model" published in 2023, "A human exposure-based traffic assignment model for infrastructure systems optimization" in 2022, and "Environmental Justice and Systems Analysis for Air Quality Management" in 2024. Initially trained in civil engineering with a focus on structural and geotechnical aspects during his undergraduate studies in Los Angeles, Bin Thaneya shifted toward the environmental dimensions of the built environment and energy systems during graduate school in the San Francisco Bay Area. Joining NYU Abu Dhabi in 2025 allowed him to return to the UAE, aligning his expertise with regional sustainability priorities through the university's global academic network.