CAMDEN ALEXANDER
Undergraduate, Sociology & Criminology
Camden Alexander is a second-year undergraduate student double majoring in Sociology and Criminology. She works under Dr. Sara Grineski as a Research Assistant at the Center for Natural and Technological Hazards at the University of Utah. Camden is researching intellectual disability in association to pollution exposures with Roger Renteria, and she plans on continuing this research while pursuing two bachelor's degrees and law school. She also writes opinion pieces for the Daily Utah Chronicle advocating for racial equality, and in her spare time, rewatches her favorite tv shows.
MARCO ALLAIN
Ph.D. Student, Geography
u1121076@utah.edu
Marco Lorenzo Allain is a Doctoral student in the Geography Department that is currently working as a Graduate Assistant at the University of Utah. Marco’s current research focuses on park equity analysis, a component of environmental justice. In the past, he used remote sensing technique to analyze the following: increasing desertification, sedimentary deposition and erosion, and the proliferation of the mountain pine beetle. Marco achieved a Bachelor of Arts in Geography from the University of New Orleans and a Master of Science in Earth Science from Emporia State University. Marco interned at the NASA Stennis Space Center and the NASA Ames Research Center as part of the DEVELOP Program. He has also spent time working briefly as a wellsite geologist and a utility forester.
ASMITA BHATTARAI
Ph.D. Student, Geography
Asmita Bhattarai is a Doctoral student in the Department of Geography and a Graduate Assistant for the DIGIT lab at the University of Utah. Her doctoral research focuses on the application of Geospatial Data Science to explore spatio-temporal trends of recovery in Nepal following the 2015 Earthquake. She presented her work at the American Association of Geographers (AAG 2021) conference and she was also an invited speaker for the Kathmandu chapter of Women in Data Science (WiDS 2021) conference. Asmita holds a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from Tribhuvan University, Nepal, and a Masters degree in Business Administration with GIS specialization from Eastern Illinois University. Through prior work experiences in architecture, telecommunications, and manufacturing, she has developed an array of skills ranging from design and visualization to analytics and automation. She is passionate about employing her unique blend of knowledge and skills to conduct multi-disciplinary research with social implications.
AARON FLORES
Ph.D. Student, Geography
aaron.b.flores@utah.edu
Aaron Flores is a Doctoral student in the Department of Geography and a Graduate Assistant for the Center for Natural and Technological Hazards at the University of Utah. He is also an active member of the American Association of Geographers. His research has focused on social vulnerability to environmental hazards and health disparities. He has conducted research on Hurricane Harvey and its impact on residents in the greater Houston, Texas area and on extreme heat vulnerability in Lubbock, Texas. Aaron obtained a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Science in the Department of Geography at Texas Tech University. He has interned for the South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center, the Texas Tech University Climate Science Center, and was a UC Santa Cruz Climate Engagement Program Fellow in 2017. He has also completed training in Community Resilience and Community Planning for Disaster Recovery from the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center.
ERIC GOODWIN
Master's Student, Geography
Eric Goodwin is a Masters student in the Department of Geography and an affiliate of the Center for Natural and Technical Hazards at the University of Utah. His research interests focus on disaster risks and social vulnerability to disasters and hazards. Additionally, Eric is a Graduate Assistant in the Digitally Integrated Geographic Technologies (DIGIT) Lab where he provides data analysis services to both university and external clients. Eric received degrees in Human Geography (B.S.) and French (B.A.) from Middle Tennessee State University.
BRENNA KELLY
Master's Student, Geography
Brenna Kelly is a Masters student in the Geography Department at the University of Utah. Her interests include health disparities, climate change, and statistical methods. Brenna completed her undergraduate degree in Population Health Data Science and has worked in the Surgical Population Analysis Research Core in the University of Utah Department of Surgery since 2018. She has experience in science visualization and big data research. A lifelong resident of the Intermountain West, Brenna enjoys hiking, mountain biking, and camping.
CASEY MULLEN
Ph.D. Student, Sociology
casey.mullen@utah.edu
Casey Mullen is a Doctoral student in the Department of Sociology. Her research interests include environmental justice, climate justice, social vulnerability to hazards/disasters, environmental health disparities, and community based participatory research. Her future research will involve a mixed methods approach in order to examine the impact of air pollution on understandings and behaviors associated with the use of personal air quality monitors. She has also conducted qualitative research on climate change understandings and actions in the Southeast Florida region. Casey obtained her Bachelor of Arts (2013) at East Carolina University and her Master of Arts (2018) at Florida Atlantic University while majoring in Sociology for both degrees. She has completed training in Community Resilience for the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center, Al Gore’s Climate Reality Leadership Corps, as well as a Climate Resilience Leadership Training in Southeast Florida.
JOEL PALMER
Ph.D. Student, Geography
Joel.Palmer@utah.edu
Joel Palmer is a Doctoral student in the Department of Geography with research interests focused on community hazard and disaster resilience. Specific areas of interest include a comparison of pre-disaster and post-disaster grants to assess whether pre-disaster spending is effectively increasing national resilience and comparing flood mitigation measures to other natural hazards (e.g., wildfire, earthquake) to identify which of those techniques might be applicable to non-flood events. Additionally, Joel is a full-time employee of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) where he has worked for the past ten years. His experience with FEMA includes developing disaster exercises, conducting threat and hazard analysis, and supporting disaster response efforts across the country. He is now the lead for the FEMA Integration Team (FIT) for the state of Utah working to support state efforts to increase preparedness for major disasters including to a catastrophic earthquake along the Wasatch Fault.
KEVIN RAMOS
Undergraduate Student, Geography
Kevin Ramos is a second-year undergraduate student in the Department of Geography. Kevin is majoring in Geographic Information Science (GIS). He is currently a research assistant through the Research Experiences for Undergraduates program, researching the February 2021 Texas winter storm and its social impact. He has participated in the University of Utah’s Summer Program for Undergraduate Research and H.A.P.P.I.E.S.T. program where he worked with a team of researchers to find the relationship between land surface temperatures and suicide prevalence. He aspires to continue his future academic career by pursuing a master’s degree in GIS.
ROGER RENTERIA
Ph.D. Student, Sociology
roger.renteria@soc.utah.edu
Roger is a Doctoral student in the Department of Sociology and a fellow of the Global Change and Sustainability Center at the University of Utah. Originally from El Paso, Texas, Roger attended the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) where his work as a sociology graduate student centered on social inequalities experienced by people living with the loss of a limb in México. He has experience working with the NIH-funded BUILDing SCHOLARS program at UTEP as a research mentor for undergrad students and he headed the peer-mentoring program for first- and second-year cohorts. His current research and teaching interests revolve around social inequalities, health disparities, environmental justice, and environmental sociology.
AHMAD MOJTOBA RIYADH
M.S. Student, Geography
riyadh.mojtoba@utah.edu
Ahmad Mojtoba Riyadh is a Master’s student in the Department of Geography and a Graduate Assistant for the Center for Natural and Technological Hazards at the University of Utah. He graduated from the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). His undergraduate thesis focused on area delimitation and comparison of their characteristics in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This work was published in the Asia Pacific Journal of Regional Science. He has previously conducted research using kernel density analysis and a space index to develop a methodology for delimitating the city core area. His current research interests include GIScience, disaster risk, resilience and vulnerability analysis, environmental science, and urban planning.
RICARDO RUBIO
Ph.D. Student, Sociology
rrubio737@gmail.com
Ricardo Rubio is a Doctoral student in the Department of Sociology and a Research Assistant under Dr. Sara Grineski at the Center for Natural and Technological Hazards at the University of Utah. He has conducted research on the effects of generational status on food insecurity, heat resilience with Spanish-speaking populations in San Elizario, Texas, and hazardous air pollutant exposure based on ancestry at the national level. Ricardo obtained his Bachelor of Arts (2018) in Psychology from the University of Texas at El Paso. He was also a part of the 2017 National Science Foundation funded Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity: Southwest Consortium of Health-Oriented Education Leaders and Research Scholars (BUILDing SCHOLARS) 2017 Summer Research Program. He is an author on two articles, one focused on transitions in and out of food insecurity amongst children, and the other focused on how generational status impacts food insecurity levels for children.
Mathilda Scott
Ph.D Student, Department of Sociology
Mathilda Scott is a first-year Doctoral student in the Department of Sociology and team member of the Center for Natural and Technological Hazards at the University of Utah. Mathilda holds a Bachelor’s degree in history and sociology from Mount Holyoke College. Before coming to the University of Utah she worked for the United States Department of Agriculture in affordable housing. Mathilda’s teaching and research interest include housing policy, social inequalities, migration, environmental justice, and environmental sociology.
YASI SHAKER
Ph.D Student, Department of Sociology
yasi.shaker@utah.edu
Yasi Shaker is a Doctoral student in the Department of Sociology and a team member of the Center for Natural and Technological Hazards at the University of Utah. Her research and teaching interests include environmental justice, environmental sociology, social impacts of climate change, social vulnerability to hazards/disasters, food Security/food Justice and the state of diversity in the environmental sector. Yasi received her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Anthropology and Sociology and a concentration in Environmental Studies from Kalamazoo College.