TEAM

Lucia Stein-Montalvo is the Principal Investigator of the Adaptive Structures Lab and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northwestern University. Her research focuses on the mechanics of instabilities and large deformations (i.e. “shape-shifting”), and how they can be used for adaptive architecture designs. Dr. Stein-Montalvo holds a PhD in PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Boston University, and a B.S. in Mathematics with a minor in Hispanic Studies from Davidson College. Prior to joining Northwestern, she was a Presidential Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Princeton University.

Paul Ducarme is a NU Sustainability and Energy postdoctoral fellow. His research focuses on using mechanical instabilities to give buildings life-like properties, allowing architectural elements to suddenly change shape in order to adapt to and regulate humidity, temperature, ventilation, light, or air pollution.
He obtained his PhD from the University of Amsterdam in May 2026, conducting his doctoral research on nonlinear materials and structures at the AMOLF and ARCNL institutes. Most notably, he experimentally demonstrated a new type of instability, called countersnapping, that allows structures to deform in previously impossible ways, becoming stronger as they snap.
Outside the lab, Paul enjoys playing chess, photography, bike rides, and soccer.

Chealen Berry is a senior at Northwestern University studying Civil Engineering with a minor in Spanish. She has had repeated internships with Thornton Tomasetti in Chicago, IL, and has co-authored a journal paper that is currently under review by the ASCE Journal of Structural Engineering in which she investigates the structural and facade damage caused by the 2020 Port of Beirut Blast. Following her studies at Northwestern, she plans to pursue a master’s degree and hopes to use her master’s thesis to investigate timber’s possible use in adaptive facades.

Karina Paxton Filoteo is an undergraduate student studying Civil Engineering at Northwestern University. Passionate about resilience and adaptability in the built environment, Karina is researching the impact of porous metamaterials on evaporation and water flow for future application in permeable surfaces and facades. Karina won the 2026 McCormick Undergraduate Summer Research Grant enabling her to devote eight weeks of the summer to developing her research.

Zirun (Benny) Wu is an M.S. student in Mechanical Engineering at Northwestern University.

In the Adaptive Structures Lab, he researches bio-inspired passive flow systems and flow-induced vibrations. His prior research includes electrocatalysis modeling at RWTH Aachen University and CFD simulation of supersonic particle flow in cold spray additive manufacturing at Northeastern University. He also brings industry experience from Abiomed, Inc., where he contributed to development work on the Impella BTR heart pump.

Having grown up in China, Peru, and the United States, he is passionate about integrating social, economic, and legal perspectives into engineering solutions to create lasting global impact.

Outside the lab, you’ll find him volunteering at the Wirtz Center scene shop or playing lacrosse on the lakefront (when it’s warm).

Hannah Oh is a sophomore at Northwestern University studying Manufacturing and Design Engineering. Though she comes from a natural science background in high school, with a focus on biological polymers, she has since converted to engineering. Specifically, she is currently researching locally-stiffened knitted textiles as an urban wind-mitigation strategy, under an AYURG grant for 2026. Following her graduation at Northwestern, she wishes to pursue a master’s and/or PhD in mechanical or civil engineering.

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