Ning Ai joined UIC in 2011 with a joint appointment in the Department of Urban Planning and Policy and the Institute for Environmental Science and Policy. Her research and teaching interests center on integrating life cycle perspectives and locally-specific data into environmental planning and sustainability policy making. Her primary theme of interdisciplinary research is material and waste management in an urban metabolic context. She has also implemented neighborhood-level data mining, environmental modelling, and metrics development to study sustainable transportation and environment.
Prior to joining UIC, Ning worked for the World Bank, the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Co., and the Georgia State Department of Natural Resources. Her previous work experiences include the application of GIS in environmental protection, urban sustainability indicators, and the socioeconomic impact analysis of natural disasters. She currently serves on the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP) Committee on Diversity and was formerly the Chair of the Sustainability and Resource Conservation Division of the Air & Waste Management Association 2020-2022.
She obtained her dual-bachelor degrees in Environmental Economics and Environmental Engineering from Renmin University and Tsinghua University, respectively, in China, Master’s degree in City Planning from MIT, and doctoral degree in City and Regional Planning from Georgia Tech.
Current Team Members
Yufan Jiang joined Dr. Ai’s research group as a Ph.D. student in the Department of Urban Planning and Policy in 2021. She received her bachelor degree of Landscape Architecture from Shenyang Jianzhu University in 2017 and joint master degrees of Architecture and Urban Planning from University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign (UIUC) in 2020.
Em Hall is a PhD Candidate in Urban Planning and Policy. Her dissertation research focuses on the use of public-private partnerships (P3s) in public transit projects in the US. Additional research projects focus on the growth of statewide mobility management networks, and the ways in which telehealth and transportation affect patients’ abilities to attend medical appointments. She is a two-time recipient of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship and the Co-Managing Editor of the 2022 APA State of Transportation Planning report.
Muhammad Rizwan Raza, a first-year Master’s student in Urban Planning and Policy at UIC’s College of Urban Planning and Policy, joined Dr. Ai’s research group in 2024. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in City and Regional Planning (2018) and a Master of Science in City and Regional Planning (2022), both from the University of Engineering and Technology Lahore, Pakistan. Raza’s research interests lie in waste management and environmental planning. Beyond academics, he enjoys exploring new places in his free time.
Cassie Varrige (she/her/hers) is a first-year Master’s of Urban Planning and Policy student. She brings a background in health policy and political psychology to her current interests in spatial analysis, health in planning, and climate adaptation and mitigation. Outside of class, you can find her working at the Urban Data Visualization Lab.
Alessandro Beltran is an undergraduate student at UIC studying urban studies and public policy, anticipated to graduate in the spring of 2024. He has a strong interest in sustainability planning and policy.
Hannah (Kay) Wendt is an undergraduate student at UIC, anticipated to graduate in the spring of 2024. She majors in Urban Studies with a minor in Sustainable Cities. She is passionate about improving urban environments through community planning. In her free time, you can find Hannah enjoying video games, books, food, and nature in all its forms.
Ning Ai, Ph.D. 