Tianjun (Luke) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Environmental Health. Before joining the University of Kentucky, he was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth Science and Geography at the California State University, Dominguez Hills and a research scientist in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Washington. Based on his multidisciplinary training and experience, his research centers on the intersection of urban planning, exposure assessment, and environmental health. He uses sensor technologies, geospatial techniques, and community engagement to develop health-promoting communities. To date, his scholarly contribution falls into three areas:
His work has been applied in epidemiological studies as well. Notably, Luke has conducted community air monitoring programs using low-cost sensing and mobile monitoring and evaluated community mobility challenges across disadvantaged communities in California. One of his overarching research goals is to improve environmental health, inform intervention strategies, and promote environmental and mobility justice.
Luke has been the principal investigator (PI) and co-PI on multiple extramural and intramural projects funded by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, US Environmental Protection Agency, US Department of Transportation, California Air Resources Board, California State University Transportation Consortium and California State University, Dominguez Hills. The focuses of these projects include conducting air pollution monitoring campaigns for at-risk communities, investigating telecommuting patterns and trends and their associated impacts on land use and transportation, evaluating the climate and environmental impacts of warehouses, and assessing the environmental and equity impacts of parking policies.
He gained rich experience in developing nationwide air quality models funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency (i.e., air pollution exposure models in the continental US), a community-level air quality project funded by the Minneapolis Department of Health, and community-based transportation assessment and modeling work funded by the US Department of Transportation. His expertise in exposure assessment, fieldwork, and geospatial analysis has allowed him to teach courses in environmental analysis and planning, urban environmental geography, numerical methods, and geospatial information system. He has advised over 12 undergraduate and graduate students and led the Built Environment, Air, and Mobility (BEAM) Lab (https://tianjunlu.weebly.com/), with a primary focus on environmental health, the built environment, and environmental justice. His research and leadership experiences make him well-qualified to mentor students across different programs.
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Growing up in an industrial city in China, Dr. Tianjun Lu developed an awareness of environmental challenges and the relationship between the built environment and public health.
