Rina Ghose

Rina Ghose is a Professor in the Department of Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), affiliated with the Engineering and Mathematical Sciences School. She leads the Geospatial Data Science Lab, focusing on advancing environmental and social equity through geospatial analytics and community-engaged research. Her work bridges geotechnologies with societal challenges, particularly in urban health, disaster resilience, and participatory planning.

Dr. Ghose holds a PhD in Geography from UWM (1998), an MA from the University of Montana (1993), and a BA in Geography (Honors) from the University of Calcutta (India, 1988). Her research interests include geospatial technologies, citizen science, urban policy, and health disparities, with a focus on marginalized communities.

Her research explores spatial dimensions of opioid overdose mortality, structural racism’s impact on mental health, disaster vulnerability analysis, and food justice in urban environments. She has pioneered frameworks like spatial social network analysis to study overdose deaths and employs participatory GIS (PPGIS) to empower community-driven solutions. Recent work emphasizes precision epidemiology and geospatial tools for addressing the opioid crisis and pandemic-related health inequities.

Dr. Ghose’s grants and collaborations focus on integrating geospatial data with community engagement, particularly in Milwaukee and other U.S. cities. Her lab’s projects include optimizing opioid crisis responses, mapping urban food deserts, and analyzing social media during disasters. She contributes to policy initiatives addressing urban health equity and spatial justice through evidence-based geospatial insights.

Key community involvements include the Social Development Commission, WisHope initiative, Milwaukee Urban Gardens, and Harambee Community projects. Her work bridges academic research with grassroots activism, emphasizing equitable urban development and technology access for marginalized groups.