Laxmi Ramasubramanian
Professor and Chair
Urban and Regional Planning Chair
Current Research Activities
How to improve the quality of public engagement about complex urban problems; and how to innovatively use local/indigenous community knowledge to inform planning and policymaking.
Research Connections to Current Events
I am working on two major topics: Environmental Sustainability and Gender, Equity, and Inclusion. The issue of environmental sustainability is central to much of what's going on these days - whether it was the wildfires in 2019 or the pandemic in 2020 or the impending challenges of sea level rise and the harm on vulnerable coastal communities in coming decades. I am also working on the challenges facing academic women in GIScience. We cannot be effective in STEM fields if we don't address issues of equity and diversity.
Personal Connections to Research
I am a critical reflective practitioner. This means that my research agenda is shaped by my lived experiences and my teaching. I am inspired by activists who seek to make the world a better place.
