GES Seminar with Dr. Matt Fagan: The Limits of Pixels
How remote sensing can overestimate forest edge effects
Location
Sondheim Hall : 108
Date & Time
September 9, 2026, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Description
Join the Department of Geography and Environmental Systems for the first seminar of the Fall 2026 semester.
Dr. Matt Fagan
Geography and Environmental Systems
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
The Limits of Pixels: Overestimation of Forest Edge Effects Using Remote Sensing
Most forests lie within 1 km of a forest edge, where edge effects can influence carbon storage, temperature regulation, and biodiversity. Yet estimating these effects using remote sensing is challenging. Four persistent methodological and definitional issues shape these estimates: spatial scale, forest definition, forest type, and the substitution of space for time.
Surveying the recent literature, Dr. Fagan will explain how these issues have likely led to the systematic over-measurement of edge effects in urban, riparian, and upland forests.
The full Fall 2026 GES Seminar Series schedule is attached.
