Langezijds

prof.dr. J.I. Blanford (Justine)

Full Professor
ITC-EOS
Langezijds 1318
j.i.blanford@utwente.nl
+31534895503
Business card

Since my time of scrambling over mountains and through bat guano, I have accumulated considerable and varied research experiences as an active researcher and educator.  I use GIS, big datasets, and a variety of geospatial computational and analysis methods to address applied research questions across a range of topics from sinkholes to sky islands, tornadoes, malaria and migration, among others.  At its core, my research has focused on broad issues related to human health, particularly in relation to climate and climate change, examining causes and consequences from local to global spatial and temporal scales, and anywhere in between that is relevant to the system of study.

Many complex problems (e.g., pandemics, climate change) are challenging to address as they cross social-ecological systems (SES) that are comprised of many components distributed across scales and often compounded by different socio-economic and environmental drivers operating nonlinearly. Geographic Information Science (GIScience), an integrative and technical science is well suited to address a range of local and global health challenges that cross social-ecological systems.

As the quantity and availability of geospatially enabled data continue to increase, so do the concomitant challenges and opportunities associated with the appropriate gathering, analyzing and dissemination of the findings from these data.  Spatial Data and GIScience clearly play a central role in addressing the health of our planet and, from an educational perspective, I am interested in expanding and strengthening Spatial Data and GIScience education to foster multi-disciplinary research and education.

Areas of Expertise: GIS, Spatial Data Science, geohealth, planetary health, spatial analysis, education

Organisations

It is an exciting time to be in the field of GIS/ Geospatial (Data) Sciences! Technologies have evolved making the collection and communication of spatial data much easier. Although there has been an explosion in the availability of geospatial data, asking pertinent questions and sifting through streams of data to make sense of the world in which we live, remains a challenge.

The fun part of using GIS/Geospatial (Data) Science and Spatial Analysis is that it can be applied to all disciplines to view where something is, explore patterns, relationships and interactions, model different outcomes and develop hypotheses whether this ranges from sports analysis to disease risk. In general, I am interested in using Geospatial technologies and GIS/Spatial Data Science:

  • to better understand mechanisms influencing health and well-being at different scales across space and time
  • to leverage diverse data sources to understand changing risks;
  • to determine how we can effectively integrate these into a framework that enhances decision-making processes and provides sustainable solutions.

 

GeoHealth, Planetary Health, Public Health, One Health?

Sixty percent of all human infectious diseases are transmitted from animals and microbes of animal origin. These ‘spill over’ due to increasing contact among wildlife-livestock-humans often driven by exponentially growing anthropogenic changes caused by human activities (e.g. changes in land use, changes in climate, changes in food security, changes in politics and changes in infrastructures (e.g. digitalisation, transportation networks, water & sanitation, etc.)) and the impacts of these activities on the environment.  

Climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity that will affect the health and well-being of the population. Now more than ever we need to understand what changes are taking place spatially and temporally, locally and globally. Many health changes are complex crossing social-ecological systems (SES) that are comprised of many components distributed across scales, often compounded by different socio-economic and environmental drivers, many operating non-linearly. The circulation, transmission and evolution of diseases are driven by a range of factors (environmental factors, host-related factors and the pathogen itself) and how they interact in space and time. Geographic Information Science (GIScience), an integrative and technical science is well suited to address a range of local and global health challenges that cross social-ecological systems.

We integrate a variety of data (some novel, some volunteered, some authoritative, some big and messy) in a GIS and use a mix of spatial analysis, data science, machine learning methods and mathematical and geocomputational models to address applied research questions across a wide range of topics that include different aspects of health. Our work centers around three main facets:

  • understanding the ecology of disease/health across space and time (host-pathogen-environment interactions in dynamically changing environments) and what this means for health and disease outcomes;
  • how to respond, and;
  • what to communicate how.

We examine how changes in environments such as climate drive health and disease dynamics as it relates to

  • vector-borne diseases (e.g. mosquito-vectored diseases such as dengue and malaria; tick-vectored diseases);
  • disaster epidemiology (risks pre, during and post weather risk events);
  • extreme weather (e.g. heat, floods);
  • food security (e.g. effect of frost-freeze events on the environment in intense agricultural cropping systems; when and where biopesticides can be used for controling agricultural pests);
  • accessibility (e.g. seasonal effects of access to healthcare and the use of different modes of transport to access healthcare);
  • mobility (e.g. climate-drivers and how they contribute to mobility and disease circulation and transmission);
  • vulnerabilities of different populations (e.g. due to heatwaves, floods, accessibility);
  • communication (e.g. data structuring for effective communication; what is being communicated)
  • mental health & well-being (e.g. climate risk vulnerability & risk resilience)
  • etc...

 

Education

The COVID-19 pandemic forced educational institutes to pivot their F2F learning environments to online learning environments and has subsequently transformed societal expectations about education. Although there are many benefits associated with these changes in education (e.g. multi-dimensional interactions, flexibility and richer/deeper learning) there are still many challenges that can result in poor and often inadequate educational experiences (e.g., lack of real student-student and student-teacher interaction, and effective discussions).

Alongside this we have seen a rise in AI technologies and methodologies being used to answer questions via chat bots, create images, enhance our computing capabilities and drive many common household items such as the vacuum cleaner, much of which are using technologies and methods being developed in the geospatial field. These technologies and methods are already very much embedded in our daily lives.

How do we ensure we, as educators are at the forefront of these developments and are incorporating these into our curriculums? How do we maintain the geospatial aspects of our curriculums? What resources, skills and communities are needed?

For education and in particular geospatial education, I am interested in:

  • expanding and strengthening Geographic Information Science education;
  • improving the uptake and use of GIScience methods in the health science;
  • building scholarly communities and networks to foster multi-disciplinary GIScience education & research;
  • promoting education that balances interactions in both a face-to-face and online learning environment
  • redesigning programmes and curriculums

As an academic who has taught in a program geared towards working professionals, and who has also worked outside of academia, I appreciate the many levels of education needed to help students and professionals develop skill sets that enable them to excel within the realm of GIS, GIScience and the Spatial Data Sciences across a wide range of disciplines and industries.  As a result, I am interested in enhancing online/blended learning experiences for students (and staff) by promoting student scholarship that enables the exchange of knowledge, enhances collaborations between students, and builds professional social networks.

Publications

2024

Geospatial Health: achievements, innovations, priorities (2024)Geospatial health, 19(2). Article 1355. Amer, S., Augustijn, P. W. M., Anthonj, C., Tjaden, N. B., Blanford, J. I., van den Homberg, M. J. C., Rinaldi, L., van Rompay, T. J. L. & Zurita-Milla, R.https://doi.org/10.4081/gh.2024.1355A research agenda for GIScience in a time of disruptions (2024)International journal of geographical information science, 1-24 (E-pub ahead of print/First online). Nelson, T., Frazier, A., Kedron, P., Dodge, S., Zhao, B., Goodchild, M., Murray, A., Battersby, S., Bennett, L., Blanford, J. I., Cabrera-Arnau, C., Claramunt, C., Franklin, R. & Holler, J.https://doi.org/10.1080/13658816.2024.2405191Managing vector-borne diseases in a geoAI-enabled society: Malaria as an example (2024)Acta Tropica, 260. Article 107406 (E-pub ahead of print/First online). Blanford, J. I.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2024.107406Collaborative course (re)design: adapting learning design to support curriculum transformations (2024)[Contribution to conference › Paper] 52nd SEFI Annual Conference 2024. King, J. Y., Primera, R., Verkroost, M. J., Verheij, L., Cray, L. & Blanford, J. I.https://www.conftool.net/sefi2024/index.php/King-COLLABORATIVE_COURSE-454_b.pdf?page=downloadPaper&ismobile=false&filename=King-COLLABORATIVE_COURSE-454_b.pdf&form_id=454&form_index=2&form_version=finalThe power of interactive maps for communicating spatio-temporal data to health professionals (2024)Geospatial health, 19(2). Tjaden, N. B., Geeraedts, F., Riezebos-Brilman, A., Kioko, C., al Naiemi, N., Blanford, J. I. & Beerlage - de Jong, N.https://doi.org/10.4081/gh.2024.1296Fieldwork experience on the 2021 Ahr valley flood impact on older adults' social and mental health: insights from survey and interviews (2024)[Contribution to conference › Other] 14th Annual Conference of the International Society for Integrated Disaster Risk Management, IDRiM 2024. Song, C., Atun, F., Blanford, J. I. & Anthonj, C.Geographic information, geospatial technologies and spatial data science for health (2024)[Book/Report › Book]. CRC Press (Taylor & Francis). Blanford, J.https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003435082Ixodes scapularis density and Borrelia burgdorferi prevalence along a residential-woodland gradient in a region of emerging Lyme disease risk. (2024)Scientific reports, 14. Article 13107 (E-pub ahead of print/First online). Logan, J., Knudby, A., Leighton, P. A., Talbot, B., McKay, R., Ramsay, T., Blanford, J. I., Ogden, N. & Kulkami, M.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-64085-6Adverse childhood experiences increase HIV risk factors in Agbogbloshie, Ghana (2024)Vulnerable Children and Youth Studies, 19(3), 593-608. Sznajder, K., Eshak, T., Biney, A., Dodoo, N., Wang, M., Toprah, T., Blanford, J. I., Jensen, L. & Dodoo, F.https://doi.org/10.1080/17450128.2024.2354378Analysing the outbreaks of leptospirosis after floods in Kerala, India (2024)International journal of health geographics, 23(11), 1-15 (E-pub ahead of print/First online). Ifejube, J., Kuriakose, S., Anish, T., van Westen, C. & Blanford, J. I.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12942-024-00372-9

Other contributions

Selected Publications

Spatial and temporal analyses

  • Marghidan, C. P., van Aalst, M., Blanford, J.I., Guigma, K., Maure, G., Pinto, I., Arrighi, J., and Marrufo, T. (2023) Assessing the spatio-temporal distribution of extreme heat events in Mozambique using the CHIRTS temperature dataset for 1983-2016. Weather & Climate Extremes. 40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wace.2023.100565
  • Aurit, M., Peterson, R.O., Blanford J.I. (2013) A GIS analysis of the relationship between sinkholes, dry-well complaints and groundwater pumping for frost-freeze protection of winter strawberry production in Florida. PLoS One. 8(1)
  • Blanford, J.I. and MGIS Geog 586 Students (listed in alphabetical order T. Belcher, T. Black, E. Derner, J. Dunham, E. Galvan Campanero, M. Gority, R. Jones, B. Kaley, J. Kuli, R. Ligon, E. Mandal, T. Quink, J. Shinsky, M. Sodek, N. Teigland, S. Turner) (2020) Pedal Power: Explorers and commuters of New York Citi Bikesharing scheme. PLoS ONE 15(6): e0232957
  • Pfau, L. and Blanford J.I. (2018) Enhancing wilderness search and rescue through the use of geospatial data and technology. The Professional Geographer. 70(3):434-442

Mobility & Accessibility

  • Blanford, J.I., N. Beerlage-de  Jong, S. Schouten, A. Friedrich, V. Araujo-Soares (2022) Navigating travel in Europe during the pandemic: from mobile apps, certificates, quarantine to traffic-light system. Journal of Travel Medicine. taac006, https://doi.org/10.1093/jtm/taac006
  • Green, B. and Blanford, J.I. (2020) Estimating populations in refugee camps: a toolkit using remotely sensed data. Proceedings of the 53rd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. Pp 2197- 2206.
  • Blanford, J.I., Huang, Z., Savelyev, A. and MacEachren, A.M. (2015) Geo-located tweets. Enhancing mobility maps and capturing cross-border movement. PLos ONE 10(6): e0129202DataLink
  • Al-Huraibi, A., Amer, S., Blanford, J.I. (2023) Cycling to get my vaccination: how accessible are COVID-19 vaccination centers in the Netherlands? AGILE: GIScience Series, 4, 16, 2023
  • Blanford, J.I., Kumar, S., Luo, W. and MacEachren, A.M. (2012) It’s a long, long walk: accessibility to hospitals, maternity and integrated health centers in Niger. International Journal of Health Geographics.

GeoVisualisation

  • Tjaden, N. and Blanford, J.I. (2023) ENDIG. Interactive GeoVisualisation of Notifiable Diseases for Disease Surveillance Systems in Europe. AGILE GIScience Ser., 4, 46, https://doi.org/10.5194/agile-giss-4-46-2023
  • Felmlee, D., Blanford, J.I., Matthews, S., MacEachren, A.M. (2020) The Geography of Sentiment towards the Women’s March of 2017. PLoS ONE 15(6): e0233994
  • Blanford, J.I., Bernhardt, J., Savelyev, A., Wong-Parodi, G., Carleton, A.M., Titley, D.W. and MacEachren, A.M. (2014) Tweeting and Tornadoes. 11th International ISCRAM Conference. State College, Pennsylvania, USA.
  • MacEachren A. M., Jaiswal, A., Robinson, A.C., Pezanowski, S., Savelyev, A., Mitra, P., Zhangi, X. & Blanford, J. (2011) SensePlace2: GeoTwitter Analytics Support for Situational Awareness. Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST), IEEE Conference. 181-190.
  • Tomaszewski, B., Blanford, J.I., Ross, K., Pezanowski, S. & MacEachren A.M. (2011) Supporting Geographically-aware WebDocument Foraging and Sensemaking. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems.35:192-207

Host-Pathogen-Environment Modelling / Disease Ecology

  • Logan, J., Jolly, A., and Blanford, J.I. (2016) The Sociospatial Network: Risk and the role of place in the transmission of infectious diseases. PLoS One 11(2):e0146915
  • Kioko, K. and Blanford, J.I. (2023) Malaria in Kenya during 2020: malaria indicator survey and suitability mapping for understanding spatial variations in prevalence, intervention and risk. AGILE GIScience Ser., 4, 31
  • Taber, E., Hutchinson, M.L., Smithwick, E.A., Blanford, J.I. (2017) A decade of colonization: the spread of the Asian Tiger Mosquito in Pennsylvania and implications for disease risk. Journal of Vector Ecology. 42(1):3-12
  • Blanford, J.I., Blanford, S., Paaijmans, K., Schreiber, K., Crane, R., Mann, M., Thomas, M.B. (2013) Implications of temperature variation for malaria parasite development across Africa. Scientific Reports
  • Paaijmans, K.P., Blanford, S., Bell, A.S., Blanford, J.I., Read, A.F. & Thomas, M.B. (2010). Influence of climate on malaria transmission depends on daily temperature variation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 107: 15135–15139.
  • Klass, J.I., Blanford S., & Thomas M.B. (2007) Development of a model for evaluating the effects of environmental temperature and thermal behaviour on biological control of locusts and grasshoppers using pathogens. Agricultural and Forest Entomology. 9(3): 189-199.
  • Klass, J.I., Blanford S., & Thomas M.B. (2007) Use of a geographic information system to explore spatial variation in pathogen virulence and the implications for biological control of locusts and grasshoppers. Agricultural and Forest Entomology. 9(3): 201-208.

Geospatial & Education

  • Blanford, J.I. and Verplanke, J. (2023) Transforming curriculums for an age of multi-modal education: a 5-phase approach. SEFI conference, Dublin September 12th 2023
  • Blanford, J.I.Bowlick, F., Gidudu, A., Gould, M., Griffin, A.L., Kar, G., Kemp, K., de Róiste, M., de Sabbata, S., Sinton, D., Strobl, J., Tate, N., Toppen, F., Unwin, D. (2021) LOCKDOWN LESSONS: an international conversation on resilient GI science teaching. Journal of Geography in Higher Education. 10.1080/03098265.2021.1986687
  • Blanford, J.I.,Kennelly, P., King, B., Miller, D., Bracken, T. (2020) Merits of capstone projects in an online graduate program for working professionals. Journal of Geography in Higher Education. DOI: 10.1080/03098265.2019.1694874

Research profiles

I am interested in educational transformations and am involved in a number of educational activities

Education: building community

e!geoCommunity@ITC - join our geospatial education community to learn more about important topics concerning education.

Courses:

GeoHealth: Interested in learning how to make planetary health a reality and help create a sustainable, healthy liveable world? Are you interested in assessing health risks due to changes in the environment (e.g. climate, landuse) or evaluating who is at risk and how to respond, or just want to make a map from known cases to understand where something is taking place and identify disease or transmission hotspots?

Take our 10-week online geohealth course to learn how to integrate geographic information, use different geospatial technologies and apply spatial data science methods to better understand different aspects of health.  See Geographic Information, Geospatial Technologies and Spatial Data Science for Health to learn more.

Master's Programme (MGEO)

I am the Programme Director for our Master's in Geo-Information and Earth Observation Sciences. We offer a wide range of courses that enable you to build your geospatial/ giscience competencies as well as learn how to apply these skills to tackle real-world challenges and find or create sustainable solutions.

 

Other educational activities

Education Projects 

  • Re-designing a programme.
  • Geospatial Education: fit for the future. AGILE Funding initiative
  • Becoming fit for the future: Facilitating transformational change in a Master’s program. Smarter Academic Year.
  • Digital education: resilient blended learning environments. ERASMUS+ blended intensive programme

Education Workshops

  • Geospatial Education Session. What education and training is needed for a new generation of geospatial scientists? AGILE, Glasgow, 2024
  • GI Science education in an AI world: educating scientists and practitioners. GIScience, Leeds, September 2023
  • Geospatial Education - Geospatial Education 5.0: New Paradigms for Geospatial Training and Education. AGILE, Delft, June 2023
  • Geospatial Education – Transitioning from emergency online to a new normal. AGILE, Lithuania, 2022
  • Geospatial Education – Teaching through a pandemic and beyond.  AGILE, Greece. 2021
  • Global Conversations on GIScience Education: Global. Panel 3: Convergence, 2021
  • Global Conversations on GIScience Education: EU Region. Panel 2: Implementation Pedagogies for Resilient GIScience Education, 2020
  • Global Conversations on GIScience Education: EU Region.  Panel 1: Pedagogies for Resilient GIScience Education, 2020
  • Online Symposium: Advancing geospatial education for working professionals on campus and online. UCGIS, 2020

Advisees

  • Chigovanyika, T. Heat in Tanzania
  • Matajinimvar, Z. H. Air pollution and health impact analysis using deep learning models.
  • Jiang, T. (MSE 2023-2024) Is heatwave a risk in Enschede, Netherlands?
  • Ifejube, J. (MSE 2022-2023) Assessing the risk of leptospirosis in relation to flooding in Kerala, India. Selected for the Research Honours Programme at University Twente.
  • Pereira, C. (MSE 2021-2022) Addressing the rising risk of extreme heat events: a case-study of Maputo and Matola City, Mozambique.
  • Al-Huraibi, A. (MSE 2021-2022) Accessibility of COVID-19 Vaccination Sites and Testing Centers in the Netherlands by bicycle.
  • Mishra, A. (MGEO 2021-2022) A forsenic analysis of post-flood 2018 solid waste management and investigation on health risk impacts on sanitation workers
  • Liu, M-H. (MGEO 2021-2022) Knowledge, Attitude and Practices towards COVID-19 among College Students in Enschede, Netherlands: A Cross Sectional Study

Affiliated study programs

Courses academic year 2024/2025

Courses in the current academic year are added at the moment they are finalised in the Osiris system. Therefore it is possible that the list is not yet complete for the whole academic year.

Courses academic year 2023/2024

Address

University of Twente

Langezijds (building no. 19), room 1318
Hallenweg 8
7522 NH Enschede
Netherlands

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