Citation by Xiaogang Ma
The 2025 recipient of the M. Lee Allison Award for Outstanding Contributions to Geoinformatics is Dr. Wenwen Li of Arizona State University. Dr. Li’s work exemplifies the transformative potential of geoinformatics—not only to accelerate discovery in Earth and environmental sciences, but also to reshape how we model, monitor, and understand our changing planet through innovations in spatial data science and artificial intelligence.
Dr. Li is a pioneering force in the field of GeoAI, developing foundational methods that integrate machine learning, spatial analysis, and big Earth data to advance environmental monitoring—particularly in areas such as Arctic change, flood mapping, and natural hazard response. She has led groundbreaking research that bridges geoinformatics and deep learning, with a strong focus on explainability, spatial thinking, and reproducibility—critical frontiers for the next generation of data-driven Earth science.
Her vision for open and collaborative cyberinfrastructure has shaped both national and international efforts. She has played a key leadership role in major NSF- and NASA-funded initiatives. As the principal investigator of the NSF PolarHub project, she led the development of an innovative cyberinfrastructure platform for the automated discovery of distributed geospatial data across the polar regions and beyond. She also directed an interdisciplinary team that developed PolarGlobe, a 4D climate data visualization tool designed to “capture the Earth’s dance” in real time. In addition, she is a key contributor to NASA’s AI Foundation Model for Science team, advancing research to improve the adaptability and utility of AI for Earth observation.
Dr. Li is not only a thought leader in geospatial AI research, but also an architect of the infrastructure needed to make these tools accessible, scalable, and impactful.
Equally important, Dr. Li is a tireless mentor and advocate for the geoinformatics community. She has championed inclusive and interdisciplinary research, trained early career scientists in cutting-edge methods, and fostered cross-sector collaboration. She leads by example—generous with her time, visionary in her thinking, and deeply committed to the values of open science.
It is a great honor to recognize Dr. Wenwen Li with the M. Lee Allison Award. Her contributions embody the spirit of this award—innovative, collaborative, and dedicated to building a geoinformatics future that serves both science and society.