In the last century, research on urban systems dynamics has improved our understanding, leading to data-driven tools for effective urban management, including predictive analytics and simulation models. Despite these advances, achieving sustainability goals remains a challenge for cities. The historical focus on system-scale decisions must now consider the influence of urban gradients and their connections to external and internal factors. In my presentation, I will address key questions on scale selection, dimensions, and modeling, covering city-to-street scales and system-level modeling in areas like heat, pollution, energy, and environmental justice. Emphasizing community-driven interdisciplinary urban science, I will share solutions that empower urban communities and ecosystems to thrive amid evolving challenges.
Bio:
Dr. Ashish Sharma is the Climate and Urban Sustainability Lead at the Discovery Partners Institute, University of Illinois System. He is a faculty in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He holds a joint appointment as a Climate Scientist at Argonne National Laboratory. He is the Director of the NSF-UKRI joint-funded Global Center on Clean Energy and Equitable Transportation Solutions (CLEETS). He is named to Crain's Chicago Business' 40 Under 40 class of 2023.
Dr. Sharma completed his Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from Arizona State University. Dr. Sharma has expertise in atmospheric sciences, focusing on regional climate, air quality, and assessing adaptation and mitigation strategies. Through collaborative research across science, engineering, social sciences, and policy, he studies environmental justice issues, including heat, fog, air quality, and high-impact weather. Dr. Sharma has secured funding of $40M+ as PI or co-PI from diverse agencies, such as the U.S. DOE, NSF, NASA, Walder Foundation, IBM, and ComEd Exelon Energy. Dr. Sharma is a fellow of the Royal Meteorological Society. He serves on the Trust for Public Land's Natural Solutions Tool advisory committee (2022). He has co-authored an assessment of climate change impacts on the Great Lakes region (2019), a special climate assessment for Illinois (2021), and a NOAA report on aligning research