Dr. Ryan Engstrom

Ryan Engstrom is a Professor of Geography and Environment and the former Director of the Data Science Program at George Washington University (GWU). He is the Director of the Center for Urban and Environmental Research (CUER) and the Spatial Analysis Lab (SAL). He earned his Ph.D. in Geography from the joint program between San Diego State University and University of California, Santa Barbara. His research interests are in using geospatial techniques, primarily remote sensing, to understand spatial variations in a wide array of issues including climate change, health, poverty, and population. He has worked in numerous geographic areas including the Arctic, Africa, Asia, and Washington, DC. He has been funded by and collaborated with a wide range of institutions including NASA, NSF, NIH, World Bank, USAID, Children’s National Medical Center, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Ford Foundation. He has taught Introduction to Remote Sensing and a follow-on class Digital Image Processing for the last 15 years. In addition to his work at GWU, Dr. Engstrom consulted with the United States Census Bureau, the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, Radiant.Earth Foundation, and Fraym.