Welcome and thank you for getting to knowing a bit more about my research and interests! I am an Associate Professor in Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning at Utah State University. Previously I was an Assistant Professor at Kansas State University in the Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional & Community Planning; a Postdoctoral Scholar at the University of British Columbia with joint appointments in the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, Computer Science and Faculty of Forestry (with a stint at the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, EAWAG); and a UBC Liu Scholar. During 2024 I will be a Visiting Professor at ETH Zurich in the Planning of Landscape and Urban Systems program. Then in 2025, I will be a US Fulbright Scholar in Portugal at the University of Lisbon and collaborate at the University Institute of Lisbon. As a scholar with a diverse academic background, I identify primarily as a computational environmental planner. My research spans a variety of scales, topics and disciplines. However, my primary foci are along three areas of expertise:
Visualization and spatial data science: I primarily focus on the development of geospatial techniques to analyze data, explain spatial phenomenon between human and natural systems, and develop software to facilitate planning (e.g. what-if analyses, multi-criterion decision analyses).
Applied computational approaches (including optimization and artificial intelligence): As a computer scientist wrapped within planning and landscape architecture I apply and develop computational approaches toward planning and design problems both practically and theoretically.
Environmental perception and affect related to built and natural environments: My inspiration for pursuing graduate school stemmed from a strong personal drive to better understand linkages between humans and our natural world – I attempt to understand and explaining these connections through psychological constructs.
I am passionate about science and planning and how we can use technology to increase our understanding of the world we live in and create. While this permeates my professional career, I think it is just as important that this ring true at a personal level. I ride a bike (or scooter) just about everywhere, grinding at ultra long distance cycling events (see Lotoja), love renewable energy (built my own 7.7 Kwh solar array), maintain a pollinator-friendly backyard garden topped off with a diverse breed of chickens, eat a vegetarian diet and I enjoy building and designing (still play with Legos and working with my grandfather’s Shopsmith Mark V). I also have my partner to thank for a regular dose of artistic inspiration (http://andreachamberlain.org/) and my kids for reminding me that deep learning is hard and rewarding… and to strive to create a world better than was given to us!