Author: Rich

Congcong Miao: Using StreetView images for transport safety research

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Congcong MiaoGoogle Street View images are digital snapshots of real streets, widely used for navigation and urban planning.  Congcong Miao, a PhD student in GSCU, recently published a study in Journal of Transport Geography analyzing how people’s perceptions of street design affect transport safety. The study suggests emotional reactions to streetscapes can lead to non-motorist crashes and could help cities predict danger zones and design safer roads.

The study has been covered by several media outlets, including State Smart Transportation Initiative (SSTI) and Streetsblog USA.

 

UConn geographers active at the 2025 AAG conference

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GSCU faculty and students were very active at the 2025 AAG conference in Detroit.  Below are some notable items from UConn geographers.

Awards and Competitions

  • Shahriyar Parvez received the AAG Marble Fund Award for Innovative Master’s Research in Quantitative Geography
  • Shahriyar Parvez placed 3rd for AAG Cyberinfrastructure Specialty Group (CISG) Robert Raskin Student Competition
  • Ailing Jin was a finalist in the Health and Medical Geography Peter Gould student paper competition
  • Arunima DasGupta was a finalist in the Health and Medical Geography Peter Gould student paper competition
  • Yunhe Cui was a finalist for the J Warren Nystrom Dissertation Award

 

Specialty Group Election Outcomes

  • Yoo Min Park was elected to serve as an at-large board member for the Health & Medical Geography Specialty Group
  • Sabina Bhandari was elected to serve as student board member for the Health & Medical Geography Specialty Group
  • Samuel Ayivi was elected to serve as student board member for the Energy Environment Specialty Group

GSCU students receive 2025 UConn SURF Awards

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Congratulations to GIS major Katherine Patrick and UCS minor Rafe Kimball for each receiving a 2025 Summer Undergraduate Research Fund (SURF) Award.

Katherine will work with faculty mentor Dr. Dan Wanyama on a project titled:  Proposing Spatially Explicit Land Suitability Models for Orphan Crops to Support Food Security Initiatives in East Africa.

Rafe Kimball will work with faculty mentor Dr. Phil Birge-Liberman on a project titled:  Examining The Perceived Nutritional Environment in the North End of Hartford.

The SURF program is jointly sponsored by the Office of Undergraduate Research, the Provost’s Office, the Office of the Vice President for Research, the Honors Program, donors to the university, and the Deans of the Schools and Colleges.

UConn Students Compete in Sustainability Challenge

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UConn and Fort Hays State University competed in Werth Innovation for Sustainability Challenge. Two teams of students, one from UConn and one from Fort Hays State University, pitched their sustainability-focused start-up business plans to address food waste in the second Werth Innovation for Sustainability Challenge held on Nov. 2 at UConn. 

Continue reading on UConn Today.