Joe McFadden

Joe McFadden is a Professor in the Department of Geography at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), affiliated with the Earth Research Institute. He joined UCSB in 2008. His research focuses on land-atmosphere interactions, vegetation changes, drought impacts, and urban heat dynamics, combining field surveys, remote sensing, and micrometeorological measurements.

Education: B.A. from University of Pennsylvania, M.S. in Natural Resources (University of Michigan), Ph.D. in Integrative Biology (UC Berkeley).

Research interests include carbon exchange, evapotranspiration, water use, and energy budgets in natural and urban environments. He aims to improve climate models and urban design strategies through his work. Awards include the UCSB Academic Senate Distinguished Teaching Award (2018).

Advising: Supervises graduate students Renee Begin, Amy Dixon, and HsinJu Li. Served as Vice Chair and Graduate Advisor (2014-15). Visiting Professor at ETH Zurich (2015-16). Associate Editor for Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution and PLOS ONE.