University of Illinois, Department of Geography and GIS

Scientists have long known that rivers and lakes influence one another, but actually observing where one gradually becomes the other has remained a challenge.

A new study by GGIS researchers Jida Wang, Xinchen He, and Bruce Rhoads uses data from NASA’s SWOT satellite mission to introduce and demonstrate the Lake-River Continuum (LARIC), showing, for the first time, how these hidden transition zones can be directly observed in real-world systems.

The collaborative NASA-funded research reveals that the boundary between rivers and lakes is often far from fixed, changing over time in response to floods, droughts, and reservoir operations.

Learn how new satellite technology is helping scientists move from theory to observation and opening new possibilities for understanding freshwater systems around the world.

Read the story: https://ggis.illinois.edu/news/2026-06-15/ggis-researchers-use-nasa-satellite-mission-reveal-hidden-transitions-between-rivers-and-lakes

Congratulations to GGIS Ph.D. candidate Matthew Hiett on being named a 2026 American Geographical Society Council Fellow!

The fellowship will support Matthew’s dissertation research exploring how urban form shapes investment, displacement, and gentrification in Chicago neighborhoods. His project examines how streets, plots, and buildings create lasting neighborhood boundaries that influence opportunity and urban change.

Established in 2013, the AGS Council Fellowships support outstanding graduate research in geography and geographic inquiry across the United States. Matthew will be recognized at the AGS Geography 2050 symposium this November in New York City.

Congratulations, Matthew!

New research from the University of Illinois highlights how artificial intelligence is helping expand multilingual weather forecasts and emergency alerts across the United States.

Led by climate, meteorology and atmospheric sciences professor Joseph Trujillo-Falcón and collaborators, the study documents how AI-assisted translation tools are making critical weather information more accessible for millions of people.

The project also demonstrates the power of interdisciplinary collaboration at Illinois. GGIS graduate student Liam Llewellyn contributed geographic analysis combining GIS, weather, and census data to identify language translation needs for all 122 National Weather Service offices nationwide.

Read more about the study and the collaboration behind it:

Researchers advance first-of-its-kind AI tool for translating life-saving weather warnings across the US – News Bureau Researchers advance first-of-its-kind AI tool for translating life-saving weather warnings across the US June 1, 2026 11:44 am by Lois Yoksoulian Physical Sciences and Media Editor Earth and Environmental Sciences Social Sciences Share on Facebook Share on X Share via email A new study led by Illino...

PhD student, Gyudae "GD" Kim, was recently named a Jeremiah Sullivan Graduate Fellow by The Program in Arms Control & Domestic and International Security at the Illinois Global Institute.

His research studies how nuclear systems are sustained not only through technical and strategic means but also through communication systems that shape how those systems are understood and trusted. By focusing on documentary films as infrastructure, the project offers a new way to think about how knowledge is managed within high-security environments. It also has broader relevance for understanding how governments communicate complex technological risks in contexts where full transparency is not possible.

The ACDIS Jeremiah Sullivan Fellowship, named in honor of former ACDIS director and physics professor Jeremiah Sullivan, supports undergraduate and graduate students in conducting impactful research that contributes meaningfully to the field of national and international security studies and serves as a foundation for future scholarly or collaborative work. Recipients present their work in a seminar and publish in the Illini Journal of International Security.

Crowdsourced air-quality data is helping fill gaps left by traditional environmental monitoring systems — but new research shows the data is shaped by more than technology alone.

GGIS professor Yue Lin found that people’s decisions about masking sensor locations are influenced by factors such as geography, income, education, and community context, raising important questions about privacy, trust, and data equity in citizen science.

Learn more about how this behavior might affect future studies: https://ggis.illinois.edu/news/2026-05-26/study-examines-how-location-privacy-concerns-shape-crowdsourced-socio-environmental

The Illinois Global Institute has selected two graduate students from the department of geography and geographic information science to receive research awards and language fellowships.

Graduate Summer Research Awards (summer 2026)
- Sayak Roy, India. “Emergent Networks of Self-Organization: Communication Technologies, Social Infrastructure, and the Production of Everynight Lives.”

Graduate Language Fellowships (AY 2026-2027)
- Shoutao Wu, Quechua.

Congratulations to both!

What happens when you follow a question far enough?

For some students at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, it means crossing between disciplines—like history and GGIS—to better understand how we think, interpret, and represent the world.

GGIS student Jess Johnson is one of more than 1,000 LAS undergraduates pursuing multiple majors, navigating everything from historical analysis to cartography.

“You come to college to learn things,” Jess said. “There’s never been a day where I’ve had classes from both majors where I haven’t… realized that I learned something.”

Read more: https://ggis.illinois.edu/news/2026-04-30/double-life-ggis-undergraduate-jess-johnson-double-majors-history

Students from GGIS will be part of the celebration—sharing their work, engaging with the community, and helping showcase the impact of environmental science at Illinois.

Stop by and see us!

Celebrate Earth Week with SESE and Environmental Sustainability from April 15–22

Join us for a week of activities highlighting sustainability, creativity, and community—from interactive experiences to student art and more—leading up to our Earth Day celebration on April 22!

Learn more about everything happening throughout the week:
go.illinois.edu/SESE-Earth-Day

Meet Jordan McAlister, who joins Geography & GIS this spring as a Teaching Assistant Professor and Undergraduate Advisor. In this Q&A, he shares how travel, curiosity, and the built environment shape his teaching—and why inspiring students to explore the world matters most.

Read more: https://ggis.illinois.edu/news/2026-03-23/meet-jordan-mcalister-qa-ggis-newest-professor-and-advisor

What happens when economic development collides with environmental protection?

A new study led by researchers at the University of Illinois examines a controversial mining operation in Bangladesh, revealing how tensions between commerce and conservation unfold on the ground.

The research, led by Illinois GGIS professor Jim Best and graduate student Sadiul Chyoul, analyzes documents and evidence related to the project to better understand the complex trade-offs communities face when natural resources are at stake.

Read the story to learn what the team discovered about the challenges of balancing development with protecting ecosystems: https://news.illinois.edu/study-documents-conflict-between-commerce-and-conservation-at-mining-operation-in-bangladesh/