Elizabeth Wentz

Elizabeth Wentz is Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate College at Arizona State University (ASU), holding dual appointments in the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning. She leads the Knowledge Exchange for Resilience initiative, supporting Maricopa County’s community resilience through knowledge sharing, and formerly directed ASU ADVANCE promoting institutional diversity. Her research focuses on geographic technologies (GIS, remote sensing, spatial analysis) applied to urban environments, water resource management, and urban climate resilience.

• Education:
  • Ph.D. Geography, Pennsylvania State University (1997)
  • M.A. Geography, The Ohio State University (1989)
  • B.S. Mathematics, The Ohio State University (1987)

Research Interests: Urban climate dynamics, geospatial technology integration, water conservation strategies, spatial pattern analysis, and community resilience frameworks. Her work bridges theoretical GIScience with applied urban sustainability challenges, emphasizing data-driven solutions for heat mitigation, resource management, and disaster preparedness.

Recent Research Focus: Publications highlight urban heat island mitigation via tree shade optimization, geodesign for Indigenous flood resilience, and spatial modeling of energy consumption patterns. Her studies often combine multi-source geospatial data with interdisciplinary collaborations.

• Grants & Projects:
  • NSF-funded Decision Center for a Desert City (DCDC) addressing climate uncertainty
  • Urban Environmental Modeling (UEM) Project analyzing 100 global cities
  • WaterSim model development for Phoenix water planning

Labs/Teams: Director of the Urban Climate Research Center and Senior Global Futures Scientist, collaborating with interdisciplinary teams on sustainability challenges. Teaches courses on geospatial technologies and graduate research design.