APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATIONS
INNOVATION PARTNERSHIP

Jeff Atkins is a Research Biologist with the USDA Forest Service, Southern Research Station. Dr. Atkins received his Ph.D. in Environmental Sciences from the University of Virginia with a focus on ecosystem ecology, biogeochemistry, and remote sensing and completed his postdoctoral work at Virginia Commonwealth University. He is a strong advocate for open science and works closely with the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) as both a NEON Ambassador and a member of NEON's Remote Sensing Algorithm Design working group. 

Dr. Atkins's research interests include the spatiotemporal evolution of forest structure and diversity as a function of disturbance mechanisms specifically focusing on tropical cyclones, moderate severity disturbances, and co-occurring disturbances; development and application of statistical methods for use with remote sensing data (e.g., terrestrial, air-, and spaceborne lidar; UAV, hyperspectral); exploring connections between forest structure/structural complexity and forest function (e.g., microclimate regulation, productivity, resistance/resilience). 

Preferred Pronouns - He/him 

Why do you contribute to AEOIP? I am deeply invested in expanding the use of earth observation data in forestry and forest ecology and feel this is a strong partnership to help realize that goal. 

I am affiliated with the following NASA missions or airbourne campaigns - ICESat-2, CMS