Steven Manson

Dr. Steven Manson is a Professor in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Society at the University of Minnesota's College of Liberal Arts, where he also served as Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Programs. He directs the Human-Environment Geographic Information Science (HEGIS) laboratory and leads major data science initiatives like the National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) and IPUMS Terra.

• PhD in Geography, Clark University (2002)
• BA Honours in Geography, University of Victoria (1995)

His research focuses on geographic information science and human-environment systems, using agent-based modeling and big data to analyze land use change, urban dynamics, and sustainability challenges. Recent work explores spatiotemporal data harmonization and geospatial cyberinfrastructure.

The articles reveal trends in GIScience methodology, urbanization analysis, and data-intensive sustainability research. Key contributions include self-organizing map applications for health data and hybrid statistical-GIS techniques for environmental policy.

Scientific accolades include:

• Ecological Society of America Sustainability Science Award
• NASA Earth System Science Fellow
• McKnight Land Grant Professorship

As Principal Investigator for NHGIS and IPUMS Terra, he secured over $40M in NSF, NIH, and DOJ grants for spatiotemporal data infrastructure. Outreach initiatives include developing open geospatial textbooks adopted globally and collaborating with Twin Cities K-12 programs.