Tuuli Toivonen

I am a geographer and a professor of geoinformatics based at the Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki. My research focuses on understanding human–nature interactions and socio-spatial interactions between people, using open/big data sources, spatial analytics and machine learning approaches. Much of my work examines the mobility and accessibility of people from different perspectives and in different environments, using user-generated data (social media, mobile phone, sports apps, etc.) combined with traditional data sources. My work contributes to urban geography, land use and transport planning, sustainability science and conservation geography.

I lead the transdisciplinary research group Digital Geography Lab. The lab hosts some 10 researchers working together with spatial big data analytics on a human scale for fair and sustainable societies. We carry out research in collaborative projects ranging from Social media data analytics for conservation to studies focusing on people’s mobility from the perspective of exposure and health, just to name a few. Our team is an active member of the Helsinki Institute for Sustainability Science HELSUS and the Urban and Regional Research Institute URBARIA.

As a lab leader, I think a lot about how to support creativity, openness, kindness, and respect towards others in academic working life. On the teaching side, I strive to develop MSc and PhD students’ expertise in geoinformatics and spatial analytics, as well as their capacity for critical thinking. I’m responsible for the geoinformatics specialisation in the MSc programme in Geography and for teaching several courses from Introduction to Advanced Geoinformatics to more applied analysis courses such as Accessibility and Mobility of People and Conservation Planning. I spent the academic year 2019-2020 at the University of Cambridge, U.K., and am now a proud life member of the Clare Hall College.

I am a great fan of open data and open science and interested in the implications of openness for education, research and society. For some of my thoughts on this (in Finnish), please see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i68ZiFDehKw

You can follow our work on Twitter: @TuuliToivonen – @DigiGeoLab