J. Morgan Grove, Sociologist

A sociologist studies the relationships among people’s behavior and social institutions, rules, and organizations.

My notable talents are to make connections among social and ecological “things” that other people don’t see. Maybe this is curiosity or creativity, I don’t know. But it’s the ability to see connections and appreciate perspectives from different people, organizations, and ecologies.

The dominant land type in urban areas is private residential lands. The basic question I have tried to answer is: What factors affect how homeowners manage their yard?

We use a combination of high-resolution, remotely sensed data to map where trees are and where they could be. One of the really neat aspects of this work is that we use Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data, which measures the heights of objects on the land. LiDAR is crucial for helping us find the trees hiding in the shadows.

One of the most interesting projects I worked on was the relationship between trees and crime in residential neighborhoods. For every 10 percent increase in tree cover, crime declined by 11 percent. This was a surprise for many people, and it also has important policy implications.

I’m still surprised that I’m a scientist. I like science, and I like doing it to help people and the environment. I have always liked helping people and being outdoors.