Research Interests
environmental GISwatershed analysisdata collectionsensors
Opportunities
Work Study Positions Available: No
Grant Funded Positions Available: No
Course-Credit Research Opportunities Available: No
Volunteer Research Positions Available: No
Biography
Dr. Coutu is a Professor of Geography and the Chair of the Department of Geography and Planning. He has been a faculty member since Fall 2005. His area of expertise is Geographic Information Systems (GIS), with over 30 years of experience. He has worked on GIS projects in a dozen countries, specializing in GIS for national and local development. The core of his GIS-based research has been environmental GIS, watershed analysis, and data collection with sensors. His work in GIS ranges from location analytics (business mapping and analysis), field mapping and data collection, 3D modeling, urban mapping and analysis, and emerging geospatial technologies.
Dr. Coutu mainly teaches freshman and upper-level undergraduate/graduate GIS courses. He has taught and collaborates in developing the Planning Design Studios for the Planning Program. He also has an active travel program related to Asian, European, and Latin American travel courses. He has taken students to Thailand, China, Costa Rica, and Spain. Dr. Coutu's approach to travel and teaching is very hands-on. He introduces his students to travel by giving them local experiences and focuses on local perspectives and issues regarding international tourism, enabling his students to travel on their own. His approach to geospatial technologies is similar. He brings new software and projects into the GIS program and introduces students to new technologies through community-based projects and modeling. His passion is to bring the excitement and promise of new technologies into the classroom to challenge students to apply these to real-world projects.