Claus Rinner, PhD

Dr. Claus Rinner is a professor of geography in Toronto, Canada, where he teaches geospatial data analytics, cartographic visualization, and decision support techniques. As Undergraduate and Graduate Program Director as well as Department Chair, he has been involved in curriculum development and students’ career preparation throughout his career. Dr. Rinner holds degrees in applied mathematics, systems sciences, and geography from German and French universities, as well as the Geographic Information Systems Professional (GISP) certification. Dr. Rinner’s externally funded, peer-reviewed research is widely cited with an h-index of 28. He develops GIS-based methods to improve effective collaboration and decision-making in fields such as public health, city planning, and environmental conservation. Dr. Rinner is co-author of the leading research monograph on multi-criteria decision analysis techniques in geographic information science (>600 citations) and articles with 100-250 citations on topics as varied as web-based spatial decision support, argumentation maps, and the urban heat island. He has also worked on mobile, location-based services, open data, and maps as art. During the corona crisis, Dr. Rinner has engaged in public scholarship through op-eds, blogging, and self-published books. He also explores alternative learning models, including a community-focused course titled “Introduction to Citizen Research”.