Dr Arjan Gosal

Profile

I’m a Lecturer in Socio-Environmental Data Science within the School of Geography, having joined the University of Leeds in 2017; I am passionate about using machine learning techniques applied to real-world environmental problems, with a particular interest in the context dependence of human preference in cultural ecosystem services (landscape aesthetics and recreation), related to the physical environment. I was awarded a competitive Michael Beverley Innovation Fellowship at the University of Leeds in 2021 to conduct innovative research into the composition of urban trees using artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques. Recent funding was received from the Microsoft AI4Earth programme to assess landscape aesthetics at large scales using machine learning, artificial intelligence and cloud technologies.

Professional memberships

• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)
• Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society

Awarded fellowships

• Michael Beverley Innovation Fellow
• Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence (LITE) Fellow 

Responsibilities

• Programme Leader (Environmental Data Science and Analytics MSc)

Research interests

My research interests often draw from socio-environmental systems, specifically urban forests, hydrology, conservation, landscape aesthetics and recreation. Author of several peer-reviewed articles, including publication in the Journals; Ecosystem Services, Ecological Indicators and Science of the Total Environmental. Recent lead author on the report Exploring ecosystem markets for the delivery of public goods in the UK and contributing author for The IPBES regional assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services for Europe and Central Asia. An expert in spatial modelling approaches, I have used various techniques from statistical and process-based models. With strong programming experience in both R and Python, I have a passion for adopting machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies for real-world environmental management issues. 

Student education

My teaching commitments are based around environmental data science and remote sensing modules, as well as developing and leading the Environmental Data Science and Analytics MSc in the School of Geography.

Current postgraduate researchers

Tianyu Lu            Optimising Urban Form for Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation

Elle Smith            Urban Forests through Space and Time

Research groups and institutes

• Institute for Spatial Data Science
• River Basin Processes and Management