Dr. Julia DeVoy
Principal Investigator

Bio Statement:

Julia DeVoy, PhD, MTS, MBA (she/her) is is the principal investigator for the Aftermath Learning Lab and an applied developmental psychologist who has been involved in social and environmental justice impact work since 1989. DeVoy, who earned a dual major B.A. from St. Lawrence University, a M.T.S. from Harvard University, a M.B.A. from Oxford University, and a doctorate in Developmental Psychology from Boston College, has been affiliated with Boston College since 1993. As a researcher, she focuses on social class and context and their impacts on human development and learning across the life course and in different ecological contexts‎ such as ‎family, ‎workplace, ‎community, faith, and ‎educational ‎settings. In the Aftermath Learning Lab, she is interested in the developmental and public health impacts of pollution and climate change and also the developmental benefits of environmental education, informal STEM learning, community building, and environmental advocacy at all ages. DeVoy is the undergraduate dean of programs and students at the Boston College Lynch School of Education and Human Development and adjunct faculty in several schools at Boston College. She is also Director of the Experience, Reflection and Action First Year Program and the Co-Founder of the Design for ImpACCt Initiative with Clemson, Virginia Tech and NC State colleagues.

DeVoy’s work with The Aftermath Learning Lab was inspired by other student-led design thinking projects that she has co-led including the Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Leaders Network Design for ImpACCt (DFI) project and Make Fashion Clean (MFC Tie-Dye Inc.) which she co-founded and continues to serve as the Research Director. Through the Aftermath Learning Lab, she has led several grant-funded projects that resulted in the development of The Aftermath Sculpture, the Textile Waste Facts educational resource, the LEAPS Textile Waste Conference, and other impacts. Additionally, she has contributed to numerous publications in the areas of project-based learning, developmental psychology, and environmental health. At Boston College, she has also taught courses in the areas of ‘Experience, Reflection, Action’, ‘Design Thinking & Business Innovation’, ‘Restorative Justice in Global Contexts’, ‘Gender Politics’ and ‘Cyberstrategy, Innovation & Formative Development’.

Devoy’s work has been recognized in multiple settings, such as her selection as the Global Opportunities and Threats: Oxford awardee for her project addressing fresh water scarcity globally. DeVoy has also served as a supervisor and mentor for numerous Ronald McNair Fellows, Truman Scholars, Fulbright Fellows, Cambridge-Gates Scholars, Community Research Program Scholars (CRP), Gabelli Scholars, and Advanced Study Grant scholars at Boston College. In 2016, she received the Boston College 'Ever to Excel' Reverend John R. Trzaska, S.J. Award, given to a faculty member who expanded the horizons, skills, and value systems of Boston College students by providing support and guidance outside of the classroom.

Selected Publications:

1. Julia E. DeVoy, Elizabeth Congiusta, Dielle J. Lundberg, Sarah Findeisen, and Sunand Bhattacharya. “Post-Consumer Textile Waste and Disposal: Differences by Socioeconomic, Demographic, and Retail Factors.” Waste Management 136 (December 2021): 303–309. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2021.10.009.

2. Dielle J. Lundberg and Julia E. DeVoy. “The Aftermath of Fast Fashion: How Discarded Clothes Impact Public Health and the Environment.” Boston University School of Public Health. September 22, 2022. Available at: https://www.bu.edu/sph/news/articles/2022/the-aftermath-of-fast-fashion-how-discarded-clothes-impact-public-health-and-the-environment/.

Selected Presentations & Other Media:

1. Julia E. DeVoy. “Accelerating Just Transition: A Call to COP28 Action (SE# 7, Zone B6).” Invited panel speaker on December 5, 2023. United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC COP 28). Dubai, United Arab Emirates. More about the panel available at: https://laudatosimovement.org/news/accelerating-just-transition-a-catholic-call-to-cop28-action/.

2. Julia E. DeVoy. “Dispatches from Dubai: Experiences as an Official Observer Organization at the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC COP 28).” Invited panel speaker on December 4, 2023. Boston College Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society. Virtual Event from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. More about the panel available at: https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/sites/bc-news/articles/2023/fall/bc-hosts-live-discussions-from-cop28-uae.html.

3. Julia E. DeVoy. “Fast Fashion, Textile Waste and Environmental Impact.” St. Lawrence University. April 26, 2023. Available at: https://www.stlawu.edu/events/fast-fashion-textile-waste-and-related-environmental-impacts.

4. Julia E. DeVoy, Qingwan Cheng, Griffin Lawler, and Kate Canniff. “Aftermath: Fast Fashion and Textile Waste.” Wilmington Memorial Library. April 6, 2023. Event details and recording available at: https://wilmingtonapple.com/2023/04/12/video-wilmington-library-hosts-lecture-on-fast-fashion-textile-waste/.

5. Julia E. DeVoy, Mark Cooper, Evan Warns, and Kate Canniff. “The Aftermath of Textile Waste: How Fast Fashion is Impacting the Environment and Public Health, and What Can Be Done About It.” Boston Public Library: Faneuil Branch Library. October 11, 2022. Event details available at: https://bpl.bibliocommons.com/events/631b40bea57e0b98876890cf.

6. Julia E. DeVoy, Mark Cooper, Sunand Bhattacharya, and Jennifer Beard. “Textile Waste & Environmental Racism: The Opportunities For Art To Impact Public Health.” October 6, 2022. Event details available at: https://www.bu.edu/sph/practice/activist-lab/activist-lab-events/textile-pollution-environmental-racism/

7. Julia E. DeVoy, Dielle J. Lundberg, Matilda Lartey, Mark Cooper, and Brian Smith. “The Aftermath Documentary.” Boston College Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society. 2022. Filmed and Edited by Cyrus Rosen, Qingwan Cheng, Julia E. DeVoy, and Dielle J. Lundberg. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpzW3HOOqmw.

8. Julia E. DeVoy, Dielle J. Lundberg, Matilda Lartey, Mark Cooper, and Brian Smith. “The Aftermath Sculpture.” Multi-Media Textile Sculpture. Boston College Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society. 2021. Exhibition photos available at: https://aftermathlearninglab.com/sculpture.

9. Sarah Findeisen, Elizabeth Congiusta, Julia E. DeVoy, and Dielle J. Lundberg. “Post-Consumer Textile Waste and Recycling: Differences by Socioeconomic, Demographic, and Retail Factors.” Eleventh International Conference on The Constructed Environment. May 2021. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quDGkvnbKeg

10. Eva Ottum, Evan Warns, Julia E. DeVoy, and Dielle J. Lundberg. “Engineering a Bioreactor Using Frugal Innovation.” Eleventh International Conference on The Constructed Environment. May 2021. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFBxDTpvEwU.

Prior Leadership on Grant-Funded Projects:

1. Julia E. DeVoy, Dielle J. Lundberg, Brian Smith, Mark Cooper, Matilda Lartey, Sunand Bhattacharrya, Martin Scanlan, and David Deese. “Development of an Educational, Multiplayer Video Game to Address Environmental Racism and Drive Political and Community Action.” The Boston College Schiller Institute Grant for Exploratory Collaborative Scholarship (SIGECS). 2022.

2. Julia E. DeVoy, Dielle J. Lundberg, Mark Cooper, Brian Smith, Matilda Lartey, Sunand Bhattacharrya, and Martin Scanlan. “Assessing Public Health and Environmental Racism Impacts of Textile Pollution through Computer-Based Social Justice Research and Multi-Media Art and Data Dissemination.” The Boston College Schiller Institute Grant for Exploratory Collaborative Scholarship (SIGECS). 2021.

3. Julia E. DeVoy, Dielle J. Lundberg, and Sunand Bhattacharrya. “Greenhouse Gas Generation and Other Human Health Effects of Post-Consumer Fashion Waste in the U.S.” The Boston College Schiller Ignite Grant. 2020.

Selected News and Other Coverage:

1. James Rojas. “Boston 'Aftermath' Sculpture Depicts Fast Fashion, Rapid Textile Production.” WBZ NewsRadio Boston. March 16, 2023. Interviews Julia E. DeVoy. Available at: https://wbznewsradio.iheart.com/content/boston-aftermath-sculpture-depicts-fast-fashion-rapid-textile-production/

2. “Have You Ever Thought about the Environmental Impact of Fast-Fashion? - Julia DeVoy, PhD Joins Eric Alvarez.” LX Explains: NBC LX. Interviews Julia E. DeVoy. March 5, 2023. Available at: https://x.com/NBCLX/status/1632430300939669508?s=20.