Professor and Head, Department of Natural Resources and the Environment
Director, Environmental Sciences
Associate Director, Eversource Energy Center

• What excites you most about your research?

Working across disciplines with colleagues on finding solutions to environmental problems that includes new initiatives from K-12 education to international research to the numerous research and outreach activities associated with the Eversource Energy Center. In the Center, it’s particularly exciting to work with colleagues from diverse backgrounds in forest science, geospatial analysis, social science, engineering and outreach as we combine our efforts to help make the power grid more resilient in the face of severe storms.

• What’s the most valuable aspect of your research for people and communities?

The linkage of our research on the effects of wind on tree structure and function and remote sensing technology in monitoring roadside vegetation and utility infrastructure and coupling it with the storm damage prediction model. Not only will this increase our ability to more accurately predict impacts of severe storms on utility power outages, it will allow us to better manage our roadside forests to make them more wind resistant. Finally, our research is directly connected with our Stormwise outreach and education program that directly engages citizens, communities and local governments to become proactive in managing the resistance, resilience and adaptation of roadside forests to severe storms.

Research focus: Tree structure and function, remote sensing, LiDAR, education and outreach.

Website: http://www.nrme.uconn.edu/Faculty_and_Staff/Volin.php