Methods and Tools
Spatial infrastructure for urban research
Our research generates methods, datasets, and platforms that outlast individual projects. We make tools and data available to collaborators and partners where licensing and ethics allow.
The STURLA classification
The Structure of Urban Landscapes (STURLA) classification captures the three-dimensional composition of urban form, the way buildings, vegetation, and pavement combine at the block scale. Developed through a Berlin–New York City comparison and refined across cities since, it is now implemented as a Google Earth Engine pipeline applicable to thousands of urban areas worldwide. See Urban Structure and the Environment.
Mobile air pollution monitoring
A mobile platform for fine-scale monitoring of air and noise pollution in Philadelphia neighborhoods, developed with Dr. Kabindra Shakya (Villanova Chemistry). The platform captures spatial and temporal variation in pollution exposure at a resolution far finer than fixed regulatory monitors.
The Philadelphia Garden Data Collaborative platform
PGDC maintains the only authoritative, parcel-level GIS dataset of active community gardens in Philadelphia, currently documenting 556 gardens across 1,421 parcels. Current work is extending the dataset into a public platform for growers, civic organizations, and city agencies, alongside a weekly sheriff sale monitoring system. See Land in Common.
SESYNC Parks for People dataset
The lab contributes to the SESYNC Parks for People dataset, a multi-institution synthesis of data on park access, amenities, quality, and use across US cities. Data and code from the associated Nature Cities analysis are archived in the USDA Forest Service Research Data Archive. See Environmental Justice and Green Space.