Please join us in welcoming one of our newest faculty affiliates, Dr. Sang Cho! Dr. Cho is one of PEWS’ first faculty affiliates from the College of Design, Art, Architecture and Planning, and we are thrilled to have him join the PEWS Community.
Background in Landscape Architecture, Urban Design, and Planning
Dr. Cho is a technologist and designer who focuses on landscape architecture and planning research. Before joining the University of Cincinnati, Dr. Cho worked as a landscape planner in Boston, specializing in spatial analytics, and international development. He has also taught studios on urban design, landscape architecture, and sustainability at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design, Boston Architectural College, and Harvard University Extension School before joining the University of Cincinnati.
He has collaborated on various research projects focusing on environmental health alongside researchers from Harvard University’s School of Public Health and medical researchers, such as those from the Samsung Medical Center in South Korea, with a particular emphasis on spatial analytics and the impact of air pollution on health. Additionally, he served as a researcher at Harvard University’s Zofnass Program for Sustainable Infrastructure, where his work centered on sustainable development in water infrastructure in Chelsea, Massachusetts. He continues to conduct researchers with Harvard University Graduate School of Design faculty focusing on examining urban resiliency and industrial urbanism related scholarship in Asia.
He holds a Master’s degree in Landscape Architecture and a Doctorate in Design, with a focus on landscape architecture and planning from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. His doctoral research investigated the feasibility of energy transition scenarios with a focus on hydrogen adoption in South Korea’s industrial capital, highlighting the feasibility of spatial planning in the near future scenarios.
Assistant Professor at the Landscape Architecture Program at the School of Planning
Dr. Cho serves as an Assistant Professor in the Landscape Architecture Program at the School of Planning, College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP), at the University of Cincinnati. He has taught and continues to teach both seminar and studio courses to students studying landscape architecture and planning. Currently, he is spearheading global studio initiatives that focus on urban design and landscape architecture in South Korea’s industrial cities focusing on the theme related to industrial urbanism. These initiatives are in collaboration with municipalities and universities in South Korea, enhancing international partnership and learning experiences for DAAP students.
Environmental Planning and Design Innovation Collaborative (EPIC Co-Lab)
In 2023, Dr. Cho founded the Environmental Planning and Design Innovation Collaborative (EPIC) Co-Lab at the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP). In this collaborative, he works alongside colleagues on a variety of projects that involve local community groups, city agencies, and industrial stakeholders. These projects are dedicated to sustainability-related initiatives and span the fields of landscape architecture and environmental planning, with activities conducted both locally and internationally.
Current Projects
Dr. Cho is currently leading a research project on air quality monitoring, in partnership with the City of Cincinnati’s Office of Sustainability and the Connector. This project focuses on intra-urban air quality and it relationship with urban form, and greenspace, and is conducted in collaboration with medical researchers at UC.
He has also recently worked with local community groups, such as Groundwork and the Mill Creek Alliance, on youth-based water quality monitoring initiatives.
In addition, he is involved in the development of smart city sensors with researchers at EPIC Co-lab. This project aims to develop real-time environmental monitoring systems in collaboration with community groups and local agencies.
Furthermore, Dr. Cho is investigating the nexus of energy, water, and carbon in collaboration with the University of Cincinnati’s Central Utility Plant and Cincinnati Water Works that focuses on hydrogen energy transition scenarios.