Research Interests

I’m interested in understanding urban trees and the critical roles they play in cities around the world. The trees that comprise urban forests face considerable abiotic and biotic stress, but help to make cities liveable, providing residents with healthy, sustainable, and desirable places to live and work. To that end, I research the growth, function, management, and ecosystem services of trees in urban environments. I also lead the ‘New Zealand Urban Forest Initiative’, which connects researchers and urban forest stakeholders, such that new research can be used to inform best practices in urban forest management in New Zealand.

I also study the spatial and temporal dynamics of New Zealand’s indigenous forests and exotic forest plantations using a range of quantitative techniques. I work extensively with remote sensing or earth observation techniques, including lidar, as well as aerial and satellite imagery. In this capacity, I lead the ‘Geospatial Research and Analysis Lab’ at the School of Forestry.