Defense Presentation Title: Estimating and Modeling Structural Characteristics of Trees Within Aerial LiDAR Data Co-Advisors: Dr. Perver Baran, faculty fellow and teaching professor, Center for Geospatial Analytics; Dr. Laura Tateosian, faculty fellow and associate teaching professor, Center for Geospatial Analytics Abstract: The transparency and shape of tree crowns in urban areas play a critical role…

Defense Presentation Title: Facilitating Civic Engagement in Rapidly Urbanizing Regions through Geospatial Participatory Modeling Co-Advisors: Dr. Helena Mitasova, Associate Director of Earth and Environmental Sciences Applications, Center for Geospatial Analytics; Dr. Ross Meentemeyer, Director, Center for Geospatial Analytics Abstract: Rapid urbanization and the increasing frequency of extreme precipitation events are leading to communities vulnerable to flooding and…

Defense Presentation Title: Disaster Nonprofit Relief, and Housing Recovery, Using GIS Techniques Advisor: Dr. Bethany Cutts, faculty fellow and associate professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management Abstract: Volunteer organizations contribute to household disaster recovery through coordinated networks. North Carolina Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters (NCVOAD) is the North Carolina chapter of…

Defense Presentation Title: Linking Forests and Freshwater across the Southern Appalachian Forest Landscape Advisor: Dr. Katherine Martin, faculty fellow and assistant professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources Abstract: Forests act as natural water towers, provisioning freshwater downstream to support aquatic biodiversity and supply drinking water, agriculture and energy. Understanding how climate change…

Defense Presentation Title: Computationally Efficient Approaches to Modeling Flood Risk and River Discharge at Scale Co-Advisors: Dr. Ross Meentemeyer, Director, Center for Geospatial Analytics; Dr. Georgina Sanchez, Research Scholar, Center for Geospatial Analytics Abstract: River discharge—the volume of water flowing through Earth’s rivers—is highly variable in space and time and at its extremes can cause…

Defense Presentation Title: Advancing Near Real-Time Deforestation Monitoring via Multi-Source Remote Sensing Data, Landscape Processes and End-User Contributions Advisor: Dr. Josh Gray, faculty fellow and associate professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources Abstract: The proliferation of satellite imagery has facilitated the analysis of deforestation trends using multi-source time series approaches. This long-term…

Defense Presentation Title: Does Chilling Explain the Divergent Response of Spring Phenology to Urban Heat Islands? Advisor: Dr. Josh Gray, faculty fellow and associate professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources Abstract: Understanding how temperature controls plant spring phenology, the timing of plants’ spring leaf development, is critical to studying the global carbon…

Defense Presentation Title: Assessing Spatio-Temporal Variability in Watershed Nutrient Loadings Using Statistical-Mechanistic Modeling Advisor: Dr. Dan Obenour, faculty fellow and associate professor in the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering Abstract: Nutrient pollution is a global concern that threatens surface water quality. This research focuses on characterizing critical nutrient loading and retention rates to…

Defense Presentation Title: Synthesis of Radar-Observed Characteristics, Storm Structures and Surface Snowfall Rates in 10+ Years of Northeast US Winter Storms Advisor: Dr. Sandra Yuter, faculty fellow and distinguished professor in the Department of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Abstract: Current numerical weather prediction models struggle to accurately predict the timing and intensity of snowfall…

Defense Presentation Title: Multi-Scale Modeling for Wildland Fire Decision Support Advisor: Dr. Jelena Vukomanovic, faculty fellow and associate professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management Abstract: Wildland fire management includes the suppression of wildfires as well as safely and effectively conducting prescribed burns. The information needed by wildland fire managers and decision…