EMERGE NASA Data Hackathon turns environmental data into action

Posted on January 15, 2026

Students and community members from across Gainesville and beyond will gather at the University of Florida on Saturday, January 31, 2026, for the EMERGE NASA Data Hackathon, a full-day, hands-on event focused on transforming real environmental data into meaningful public insights. Pre-registration is available at geoemerge.com/nasa-at-uf. The event will take place from 8:00 AM […]

Dr. Yang selected for UF Global Fellows Program

Posted on December 4, 2025

Assistant Professor Dr. Di Yang from the University of Florida Department of Geography has been selected for the UF International Center 2026 Global Fellows Program. Dr. Yang will receive a grant to advance international research integrating satellite remote sensing, artificial intelligence, and citizen science for environmental monitoring in Ecuador, Guatemala, and Mexico. Dr. Yang’s research develops innovative frameworks that merge satellite […]

NASA-supported EMERGE hackathon

Posted on October 1, 2025

Our NASA-supported EMERGE program successfully hosted a community hackathon on September 27 at North Lauderdale Library, where participants transformed NASA satellite data into tools for tracking mosquitos and environmental health. Led by Dr. Di Yang, the event drew diverse participants from middle schoolers to librarians, who created maps, infographics, and dashboards using real NASA GLOBE […]

Standing dead trees and associated park asset wildfire vulnerability in Yellowstone National Park

Posted on January 22, 2025

Prescott, C., Ozdes, M., & Yang, D. (2025). Classification and clustering analysis of standing dead trees and associated park asset wildfire vulnerability in Yellowstone National Park. Forest Ecosystems, 12, 100284. ABSTRACT: In the Rocky Mountain and Pacific Northwest regions of the United States, forests include extensive portions of standing dead trees. These regions showcase an intriguing phenomenon […]

Linking forest management to surrounding lands: a citizen-based approach towards the regional understanding of land-use transitions

Posted on August 18, 2023

FU, SOUTHWORTH, BINFORD – Linking forest management to surrounding lands: a citizen-based approach towards the regional understanding of land-use transitions Di Yang, Chiung-Shiuan Fu, Hannah Herrero, Jane Southworth, Michael Binford Article first published online: 13 July 2023 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/frsen.2023.1197523 ABSTRACT: The Southeastern United States has high landscape heterogeneity, with heavily managed forestlands, developed agriculture, and […]

Yihe Yang

yiheyang@ufl.edu GeoNAVI Lab Focus Area: Medical Geography in Global Health Geospatial Analysis and Techniques Country of Origin: China Degree Program: PhD Entered Program: Fall 2022 Expected Graduation: Spring 2026 Dissertation Topic: TBD Research Statement: I’m currently studying health seeking behavior using quantitative methods. Adviser: Dr. Yujie Hu Educational Background M.S. in Geography, University of Toledo, […]

GARPTools: R software for data preparation and model evaluation of GARP models

Posted on October 18, 2021

Ecography YANG, HAASE, BLACKBURN – GARPTools: R software for data preparation and model evaluation of GARP models Catherine G. Haase, Anni Yang, Kristina M. McNyset, Jason K. Blackburn Article first published online: 08 OCT 2021 Ecography DOI: 10.1111/ecog.05642 ABSTRACT: The aim of the GARPTools package is to provide tools to prepare data for input into the […]

Focus Area 6: Sustainability & Global Environmental Change

Focus Area 6: Sustainability & Global Environmental Change Major contemporary issues in global environmental change and sustainability are increasingly relevant for environmental management and development practice in both the developed and developing worlds. Global socio-ecological problems call for multidisciplinary solutions that transcend the usual boundaries of science and decision-making. Sub-areas Resilience Biodiversity Sea Level Rise Anthropocene […]

Focus Area 1: Earth System Science

Focus Area 1: Earth System Science This is the science of the atmosphere, land, biota, and water from a geospatial perspective. By combining contemporary issues such as climate change, environmental extremes, and hazards, this focus area emphasizes the integrative nature of physical and environmental geography. Earth systems scientists use biophysical understanding to identify and solve […]

Alumni Adventures: Dr. Yang Yang

Posted on January 4, 2021

Dr. Yang Yang, Associate Professor at Temple University he/him/his When did you attend UF? What degrees/certificates did you earn the the Department of Geography? I came to the PhD program in 2009 and finished in 2013 What is your greatest memory from your time as a GeoGator? Every time I traveled to AAG and SEDAAG […]

Latest SEER Lab and QDEC Lab publication defines sex-specific anthrax risk for elk

Posted on October 12, 2020

SEER Lab and QDEC Lab‘s latest publication in the Journal of Wildlife Management examines resource selection and anthrax risk in female elk in southwestern Montana. This paper, led by SEER Lab and Geography #MedGeo alum Dr. Anni Yang, builds on previous work defining male elk resource selection in the same study area and compares females […]

Sex-Specific Elk Resource Selection during the Anthrax Risk Period

Posted on October 1, 2020

BLACKBURN, RYAN, YANG – Sex-Specific Elk Resource Selection during the Anthrax Risk Period Anni Yang, Kelly M. Proffitt, Valpa Asher, Sadie J. Ryan, Jason K. Blackburn Article first published online: 01 OCT 2020 The Journal of Wildlife Management DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.21952 ABSTRACT: Anthrax, caused by the spore-forming bacterium Bacillus anthracis, is a zoonosis affecting animals and […]

Exploring environmental coverages of species: a new variable contribution estimation methodology for rulesets from the genetic algorithm for rule-set prediction

Posted on May 12, 2020

BLACKBURN, YANG – Exploring environmental coverages of species: a new variable contribution estimation methodology for rulesets from the genetic algorithm for rule-set prediction Anni Yang, Juan Pablo Gomez, and Jason K. Blackburn Article first published online: 12 MAY 2020 PeerJ DOI: 10.7717/peerj.8968 ABSTRACT: Variable contribution estimation for, and determination of variable importance within, ecological niche […]

Latest SEER Lab publication introduces novel variable selection method for ecological niche modeling

Posted on May 12, 2020

Ecological niche models (ENMs) are widely used to predict the geographic distribution of species and are applied across taxa. Within the geography department, ENMs have been used to map hosts, vectors, and pathogens for MedGeo studies, species of conservation concern, and invasive species potential. Such models rely on relating non-random patterns of occurrences, locations where […]

A Metacoupling Framework for Exploring Transboundary Watershed Management

Posted on March 2, 2020

MERZ, YANG – A Metacoupling Framework for Exploring Transboundary Watershed Management Leandra Merz, Di Yang, and Vanessa Hull Article first published online: 2 MAR 2020 Sustainability DOI: 10.3390/su12051879 ABSTRACT: Water is crucial for ecosystem health and socioeconomic development, but water scarcity is becoming a global concern. Management of transboundary watersheds is inherently challenging and has the […]

A Healthy Park Needs Healthy Vegetation – The Story of Gorongosa National Park in the 21st Century

Posted on February 3, 2020

CHILD, HERRERO, KHATAMI, SOUTHWORTH, WAYLEN, YANG – A Healthy Park Needs Healthy Vegetation – The Story of Gorongosa National Park in the 21st Century Hannah Herrero, Peter Waylen, Jane Southworth, Reza Khatami, Di Yang, Brian Child Article first published online: 03 FEB 2020 Remote Sensing DOI: 10.3390/rs12030476 ABSTRACT: Understanding trends or changes in biomass and […]

Announcing The Navi-Gator, Issue 2!

Posted on November 7, 2019

University of Florida Department of Geography The Navi-Gator OCTOBER 2019, ISSUE 2 So many new and exciting things have happened… Check out our amazing new grad lab in 1215! Come visit us in the geography office– lounge around in reclining chairs and grab some new GeoGator merch. We have T-shirts and sweatshirts for sale, […]

Geography Colloquium: Drone Mapping for Coastal Seagrass Monitoring and Citizen Science

Posted on October 9, 2019

Drone Mapping for Coastal Seagrass Monitoring and Citizen Science Speaker: Dr. Bo Yang Citizen Science GIS, University of Central Florida Thursday, October 10, 2019 2:50-3:50 PM (Period 8) Turlington Hall Room 3018 University of Florida All are welcome to attend. High quality multi-spectral observations with fine spatial resolution and frequent temporal coverage are indispensable in seagrass […]

Congratulations to our new PhDs! #PhDone

Posted on August 9, 2019

Geography Colloquium: Multi-scale Modeling for Infectious Disease Transmissions – Exploring two Indirectly Transmitted Pathogens in Southwestern Montana

Posted on February 1, 2019

Multi-scale Modeling for Infectious Disease Transmissions – Exploring two Indirectly Transmitted Pathogens in Southwestern Montana Speaker: Ms Anni Yang PhD Candidate, Department of Geography, University of Florida Thursday, February 7, 2019 2:50-3:50 PM (Period 8) Turlington Hall Room 3012 University of Florida All are welcome to attend.

GeoGators Fight Breast Cancer with a Big Pink Volleyball

Posted on December 6, 2018

Five geography grad students formed a team to play in the Big Pink Volleyball tournament to raise money for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The GeoGators played two games and finished the playoff round 1-1. We had lots of fun!

UFGeog at AAG 2018

Posted on March 16, 2018

The UF Geography Department is sending a large contingent to New Orleans for the 2018 meeting of the American Association of Geographers Find out where you can see a GeoGator present their research below: Anthropogenic change to fluvial systems, I Geomorphology Specialty Group, Paleoenvironmental Change Specialty Group, Water Resources Specialty Group 4/10/2018 8:20 AM Balcony […]

Interpolation of Groundwater Depth Based on Data Assimilation

Posted on April 27, 2017

YANG – Interpolation of Groundwater Depth based on Data Assimilation MA Huan, YUE Depeng, YANG Di, YU Qiang, ZHANG Qibin, HUANG Yuan Article first published online: 27 APR 2017 Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Machinery (in English) DOI: 10.6041/j.issn.1000-1298.2017.04.027 ABSTRACT: Groundwater monitoring is limited by practical conditions, and only limited monitoring results can be obtained when it […]

Summer Course: GEO2200 Physical Geography

Posted on March 30, 2017

Explore the ever-changing atmosphere controlling, temperatures, clouds, storms, and variable winds. Examine Earth’s wealth of intriguing features, from dramatic mountains to intricate coastlines and deep oceans, from lush valleys to deserts. Investigate the distribution of these environments, the processes that create and change them, and their implications for people and life, and vice-versa. Think globally, […]

Geography Colloquium: Forest Mosaics – Spatial Forest Management Patterns from Stands to Regional Scales in Southeastern U.S. Coastal Plain and Piedmont

Posted on February 6, 2017

Forest Mosaics – Spatial Forest Management Patterns from Stands to Regional Scales in Southeastern U.S. Coastal Plain and Piedmont Speaker: Ms. Di Yang PhD Student, Department of Geography, University of Florida Thursday, February 9, 2017 3:00-3:50 PM (Period 8) Turlington Hall Room 3012 University of Florida All are welcome to attend.

Dr. Anni Yang

yangann1@ufl.edu Country of Origin: China Degree Program: PhD Entered Program: Fall 2016 Expected Graduation: Spring 2020 Dissertation Topic: TBD Areas of interest: infectious disease, epidemiology, ecological niche modeling, geospatial analysis Adviser: Dr. Jason Blackburn Educational Background B.E. in Surveying and Mapping, Hohai University M.S. in Geography, Michigan State University

Jue (Joy) Yang

tvjoyxq@ufl.edu Country of Origin: China Degree Program: M.S. Entered Program: Fall 2016 Expected Graduation: Spring 2018 Dissertation Topic: TBD Areas of interest: Medical Geography, GIS Adviser: Dr. Liang Mao Educational Background B.S. in GIS, Hunan Normal University

Market accessibility and hotel prices in the Caribbean: The moderating effect of quality-signaling factors

Posted on March 21, 2016

MUELLER, YANG – Market accessibility and hotel prices in the Caribbean: The moderating effect of quality-signaling factors Yang Yang, Noah J. Mueller, Robertico R. Croes Article first published online: 21 MAR 2016 Tourism Management DOI: 10.1016/j.tourman.2016.03.021 ABSTRACT: The purpose of the paper is to investigate the influence of market accessibility on hotel prices and how this […]

Women in STEM is strong in Geography!

Posted on December 17, 2015

Dr. Yang Yang recognized for research excellence

Posted on October 20, 2015

University of Florida Geography Alum Dr. Yang Yang has been selected for the Temple University Fox School of Business Dean’s Research Honor Roll for being named one of the top ten researchers between July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2015. Dr. Yang earned his PhD in Geography under Dr. Timothy Fik in 2013. He is currently an Assistant Professor […]

Dr. Di Yang

yangdi1031@mail.ufl.edu Country of origin: China, Liaoning Province Degree Program: PhD Advisor: Dr. Michael Binford Date that you entered grad program: 2013 Fall

Dr. Yang Yang

Email: yang.yang@ufl.edu Country of Origin: China egree: PhD Advisor: Dr. Timothy Fik Entered Program: Fall 2009 Dissertation Topic: International Tourist Flows, Regional Tourism Growth and Economic Impacts: A Spatial Econometric Method Areas of/Research Interests: Economic Geography, Tourism Geography, Spatial Econometrics

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