Mingjiang Tao teaches geotechnical and pavement engineering to prepare students for careers in civil engineering. He studies highway infrastructure engineering with a goal of advancing sustainable engineering practices. He is an expert on pavement and can speak about how extreme weather can impact it by causing buckling or sinkholes. Professor Tao has done research on the importance of post-disaster inspections of roadways to ensure their safety and account for invisible damage. He recommends communities take seriously the need to upgrade, maintain, and preserve their infrastructure to address climate change. He is working on a project to develop more durable and sustainable concrete and to synthesize a new material that can provide an economical and “greener” alternative to Portland cement for highway construction.