Douglas Houston

Douglas Houston is a Professor in the School of Social Ecology at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), where he holds a joint appointment in the Department of Urban Planning and Public Policy. A UCLA Ph.D. graduate, his research bridges urban development patterns with neighborhood livability, environmental quality, and community health.

• Education: Ph.D. in Urban Planning, University of California, Los Angeles

Research Interests center on four empirical foci: (A) transit-oriented development impacts, (B) human-environment hazard interactions, (C) urban inequality and opportunity access, and (D) advanced geographic analytical methods. His interdisciplinary contributions span transportation planning, environmental health science, public health, and urban geography.

Recent Publications reflect his expertise in environmental risk analysis, with 2025 work on wildfire mitigation behaviors and 2024 studies addressing multihazard risk perception, post-pandemic urban spaces, and infrastructure resilience. Earlier works explore Latinx transit corridor dynamics, flood risk modeling, and environmental justice in port-adjacent communities.

Research Support includes funding from the National Science Foundation, California Air Resources Board, California Department of Transportation, California Endowment, and University of California Institute for Transportation. His methodological innovations combine GPS tracking with spatial analysis for exposure assessment.