The CUNY CREST Bulletin

The City University of New York Remote Sensing Earth Systems Institute (CUNY CREST) bulletin is an initiative to keep you informed on the Institute’s latest developments and accomplishments, success stories, events, opportunities, and more. Happy reading!

Dr. Reza Khanbilvardi

Over 54 interns (30 HIRES, 5 summer bridge, and 19 NSF REU/IUSE) got the opportunity to participate in the CUNY CREST High School Initiative in Remote Sensing of the Earth Systems Engineering and Sciences (HIRES), Summer Bridge, and National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduate & Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (NSF REU & IUSE) programs. Watch the video that encapsulates the 2024 summer programs.  

CUNY CREST HIRES & Summer Bridge Director's Note 

Dr. Shakila Merchant

In its 10th year, CUNY CREST HIRES and Summer Outreach was successfully launched on June 27, 2024 and ended on August 15, 2024. The mission of the CREST outreach has always been since the inception, to build robust and inclusive pathways for secondary and post secondary students traditionally underserved in the STEM field. With a focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion, the program brings science, social science, technology, research and professional development through structured and holistic training opportunities. Each year, students learn, engage and end the program with a strong sense of belonging, and create their own STEM identity that helps them bridge through their next phase of professional careers - be it applying to college, transferring to senior colleges or preparing for graduate school or workforce. 

What Was New?

This year, the HIRES program launched a new course as part of its curriculum; Environmental Engineering: Principles, Data, and Analysis (ENGR 30200), partnered with the Columbia Climate School to host a two-day workshop on emerging risks from concurrent, compounding and record-breaking extreme heat across sectors, and increased the recruitment through additional funding that was awarded by the American Nuclear Society for the research project titled Asset-Based Collaboration for Effective Engagement of Nuclear Wastes in Consent-Based Siting.

HIRES Alumni Success Story 

2023 CUNY CREST HIRES Alumnus, Sumama Haque began his B.S. in Chemical Engineering at the Cornell College of Engineering this Fall. Sumama received acceptance from Princeton, Carnegie Mellon, and Cornell University. During his HIRES internship, Sumama conducted research on Biogenetics and Bioinformatics with other team members. Sumama is grateful to the CUNY CREST HIRES program for giving him an opportunity to conduct advanced research in STEM and develop as well hone his skill set. Read his full story below.

CREST hosted its second presenter, Dr. Arpita Mondal under its Deliver, Dialogue, Discuss, and Discourse Series. Dr. Mondal's presentation focused on deciphering the role of human-induced climate change in flooding in India and its impact. The event was well attended by over fifty international and national participants including CUNY HIRES students, CREST & CCNY students, faculty, management, and virtual guests from India. During her visit to the CCNY, Dr. Mondal also interacted with several CREST and CCNY faculty, students, and leadership. She learnt about the advanced research that is being conducted at CREST by its Ph.D. students and other scientists, particularly the flood forecasting project. She looks forward to exploring collaboration opportunities between IIT Bombay and CREST. 

On July 30, 2024, The CUNY CREST Institute and the International Institute for Security and Safety Management (IISSM) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a mutually beneficial research and educational collaboration and cultural exchange initiative that aligns with core missions of both institutions. Dr. Ravindra Kishore Sinha, Executive Chairman, IISSM and past Member of Parliament, Government of India, and Dr. Reza Khanbilvardi, Executive Director, CUNY CREST signed the MoU at the City College of New York in the presence of leadership and team members from both the institutions. Following the event at CCNY, the IISSM team held a press conference in India on August 16, 2024 to brief the media on this partnership. By combining IISSM's extensive experience in security and safety management with CUNY CREST's leading research capabilities in climate change and environmental sciences, this collaboration aims to mitigate risks and minimize losses caused by natural and human-made disasters.

CREST is delighted to introduce its newest Research Scientist, Dr. Vartika Chandra Saman who joined the institute on July 1, 2024. Dr. Saman is excited about her new role and motivated to lead research and educational efforts that promote diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and accessibility (DEIJA), as well as workforce development, while also securing funds through grant writing to grow impactful projects. Dr. Saman received her Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy in European Studies/Civilization from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, India in 2013 and 2019 respectively. Her Ph.D. dissertation is titled, Gender Quotas in Norwegian Public Limited Companies, 2003-2015.

CREST faculty members, Drs. Te Pei (Principal Investigator) and Yingli Tian (Co-Principal Investigator) received funding from the National Science Foundation on August 29, 2024 to conduct research on Unifying Landslide Domain Knowledge and AI to Understand Landslide Causality. The study begins on October 1, 2024 and ends on September 30, 2027. This award supports research to understand landslide causality by combining advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies with established geoscientific domain knowledge. Drs. Pei and Tian are grateful to CREST and CCNY for providing the platform, facility, and resources that will be crucial to conduct this research.

The American Meteorological Society announced its 2025 award and honors recipients. Dr. Reginald Blake, CREST’s Community Outreach and Stakeholder Engagement Pillar and the Associate Provost and Dean of Curriculum and Research at New York City College of Technology is the recipient of the prestigious 2025 Charles E. Anderson Award. This honor celebrates Dr. Blake for being a ‘selfless champion of BIPoC students, an inspiring mentor, and a treasured colleague who enriches DEIJ efforts in the atmospheric sciences.’ CREST congratulates Dr. Blake for his efforts and for inspiring others to contribute towards the STEM community. The award will be presented to him during the 105th AMS Annual Meeting to be held in January 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Dr. Reginald Blake

CUNY-India

Study Abroad Program Send-Off Ceremony 

The Consulate General of India, New York hosted a send off ceremony for the third cohort of the CUNY-India Study Abroad Program on July 18, 2024 in New York. Dr. Reza Khanbilvardi, CREST Executive Director, Dr. Shakila Merchant, CUNY CREST HIRES Director, Dr. Neal Phillip, Co-Director of the CREST International Collaborations Pillar and Associate Director of the CREST Education & Training Pillar, Ms. Paramita Sen, Associate Co-Director of CREST international Collaboration Pillar, and Ms. Srishti Tyagi, CREST Communication Manager participated in the event.

44th annual International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium 

CREST leadership and scientists participated in the 44th annual International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium of the IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society from July 7 to 12, 2024 in Athens, Greece. The theme of the symposium was Acting for Sustainability and Resilience. It focused on sustainable development goals aligned with the United Nations 2030 Agenda. The event provided a platform for the attendees to engage in training, discussions, debates, and more through publications, lectures, presentations, and forums specializing in remote sensing.

Joint 31st International Laser Radar Conference (ILRC) & 22nd Coherent Laser Radar Conference (CLRC)

CREST attended the 31st ILRC with CLRC in Landshut, Bavaria from June 23 to 28, 2024. CUNY CREST Scientist, Professor and Chair of Electrical Engineering, CCNY and NOAA EPP/MSI CESSRST II Director, Dr. Fred Moshary participated in the event along with world-class experts, researchers, and industry professionals in the field of laser radar technology. This event showcased significant advancements and emerging trends in the utilization of laser radar (LIDAR) systems across various sectors through presentations, panel discussions, case studies, and discussions.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Center for Earth System Sciences and Remote Sensing Technologies (NOAA CESSRST) II is one of the four Cooperative Science Centers. The program is funded by the NOAA Educational Partnership Program with Minority Serving institutions (EPP/MSI). It provides the education and training for graduates to form a pathway to workforce opportunities within NOAA and the NOAA mission enterprise. 

About the CUNY CREST Institute

The CUNY CREST institute was officially approved in June 2010 and inaugurated on November 29, 2010. It is a collation of interdisciplinary researchers across CUNY system who are passionate about addressing grand societal challenges through advanced earth system sensing technologies, raising awareness, engaging secondary & postsecondary students & community outreach. The institute is designed to provide a collaborative environment for faculty and scientists from various CUNY campuses to engage in the field of Earth System Sciences and Remote Sensing. This environment helps create opportunities to attract external funding and bring in new resources for the faculty, students, and CUNY as a whole. For additional information, visit crest.cuny.edu.