Disaster Recovery Hazard Mitigation
Flood Risk Disaster Analytics
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Welcome （欢迎)
Welcome （欢迎)
Welcome to Yang Zhang’s website. I have created this website to share information about my research, publications, courses, and latest news.
I am an Associate Professor and the Associate Chair of the Urban Affairs and Planning Program within the School of Public and International Affairs at Virginia Tech. I am on the Board of the International Association for China Planning.
GRAD5134 Interdisciplinary Study: Principles of Disaster Resilience and Risk Management
GRAD5134 Interdisciplinary Study: Principles of Disaster Resilience and Risk Management
AUGUST 21, 2015
GRAD 5134 Interdisciplinary Study: Principles of Disaster Risk Managementis a graduate course that utilizes a scenario- and case-history-based learning approach and features a capstone team project to mimic the way interdisciplinary teams have to collaborate in the real world. Enrolled students will be problem-focused around central issues, rather discipline-focused.
Fall 2015
Yang Zhang will serve as the Master of Urban and Regional Planning program director and coordinator starting fall 2012
Yang Zhang will serve as the Master of Urban and Regional Planning program director and coordinator starting fall 2012
MAY 11, 2012
Yang Zhang will serve as the Master of Urban and Regional Planning program director and coordinator starting fall 2012. His term ends in May 2017. The program director/coordinator’s responsibilities include recruiting, admission, graduate curriculum, student advising, and outreach.
Yang Zhang was on the panel on Forms of Urban Resilience at the Distressed Cities Conference
Yang Zhang was on the panel on Forms of Urban Resilience at the Distressed Cities Conference
MAY 11, 2012
Yang Zhang and five other panelists ( Margaret Cowell, Patrick Roberts, Laura Jensen, Max Stephenson, Laura Zanotti, Kevin DeSouza) discussed forms of urban resilience at the Distressed Cities: Ridenour Faculty Fellowship Conference 2012 (April 12-13 2012). The Ridenour Faculty Fellowship Fund is an endowment gift from the Strickler Family of Harrisonburg, VA to honor Mr. Minnis Ridenour’s service to Virginia Tech and the State of Virginia and to foster the creative advancement of faculty in the School of Public and International Affairs.
Yang Zhang is appointed as a member of the Virginia Tech Graduate Curriculum Committee
Yang Zhang is appointed as a member of the Virginia Tech Graduate Curriculum Committee
MAY 11, 2012
Yang Zhang is appointed as a member of the Virginia Tech Graduate Curriculum Committee representing the College of Architecture and Urban Studies. His term starts on April 10, 2012 and ends on June 30, 2014.
Yang Zhang received the Mentoring Micro-Grant to boost research and teaching collaboration with universities in China
Yang Zhang received the Mentoring Micro-Grant to boost research and teaching collaboration with universities in China
MAY 11, 2012
Yang Zhang received the 2012 Mentoring Micro-Grant from the AdvanceVT office to strengthen research and teaching collaboration between the School of Public and International Affairs at Virginia Tech with universities in China.
Yang Zhang, John Randolph, and William Drake are named Summer Scholars by the Institute of Society, Culture, and Environment
Yang Zhang, John Randolph, and William Drake are named Summer Scholars by the Institute of Society, Culture, and Environment
MAY 11, 2012
Yang Zhang, John Randolph, and William Drake from the Urban Affairs and Planning Program at Virginia Tech received a research grant ($17,272) from the Institute of Society, Culture, and Environment as the institute’s Summer Scholars. The team will work on a project titled Developing a Policy Framework for Community Resilience Building after Disaster. This project seeks to examine the policy environment which not only allows disaster-stricken communities to meet their time sensitive needs after a disaster, but also to effectively use the recovery as an opportunity to implement policy adjustments that aim to reduce communities’ long term vulnerability. This remains one under-studied, but critical aspect of building community resilience.
Yang Zhang and William Drake are awarded an Imagery Grant by the GeoEye Foundation
Yang Zhang and William Drake are awarded an Imagery Grant by the GeoEye Foundation
MAY 11, 2012
The GeoEye Foundation awarded an Imagery Grant to Yang Zhang and William Drake to study the rebuilding and recovery following the destructive 8.0 Wenchuan Earthquake in 2008, which affected 46 million people, caused over 88,000 deaths, and paralyzed the economy of a large part of western China. In the rural region where the massive earthquake hit, many small towns were partially or completely destroyed. Following the earthquake, the Chinese government made an ambitious rebuilding plan, with poorly constructed houses being replaced by reinforced concrete buildings, and entire towns being relocated to areas with lower seismic risk.
Satellite imagery from GeoEye will be utilized to provide accurate base maps of infrastructure, building structures, natural features, and land use patterns in the impacted area prior to the earthquake and the changes occurred during the rebuilding period. Specifically, GeoEye imagery will be used to map temporal changes in land use and development patterns before and after the earthquake. This will allow the researchers to gauge the extent to which seismic mitigation strategies were implemented in the recovery period.
Yang Zhang is featured in the current issue of the UAP newsletter
Yang Zhang is featured in the current issue of the UAP newsletter
APRIL 26, 2012
Yang Zhang is featured in the current issue of the UAP newsletter.
Virginia Tech Urban Affairs and Planning Newsletter 1(4)
Excellence in Teaching Award
Excellence in Teaching Award
APRIL 26, 2012
Yang Zhang won the 2011-2012 Virginia Tech College of Architecture and Urban Studies Certificate for Excellence in Teaching.
Class Tour to the Visionarium
Class Tour to the Visionarium
FEBRUARY 18, 2012
Students in UAP5114 visit the Visionarium at Virginia Tech. The Director of Visual Computing, Dr. Nicholas F. Polys showcased the supercomputing and visual analysis technology and their applications in urban planning. Students experienced the three-dimensional model of the town of Blacksburg, VA. The virtual model, known as “3D Blacksburg,” includes topography, aerial photography, and buildings in a 3-D environment. This is a wonderful tool to visualize related spatial information such as building interiors, utilities, and networks.
The “3D Blacksburg” is a project led by Virginia Tech’s Center for Geospatial Information Technology.
A paper is coming out in Environment and Planning B
A paper is coming out in Environment and Planning B
FEBRUARY 18, 2012
The paper is titled Will Natural Disasters Accelerate Neighborhood Decline?This paper examines the impact of an abrupt catastrophic natural disaster on residential property vacancy and abandonment. Using the Discrete Time Hazard Model with parcel level land use data in Miami-Dade County, Florida, from two years prior to and eight years after Hurricane Andrew (1991-2000), the analysis shows that Hurricane Andrew triggered widespread property vacancy and abandonment in its impact area, especially in neighborhoods already in decline. Occurrence of vacancy and abandonment is determined by damage intensity and the pre-event neighborhood socio-demographic characteristics. The analysis also shows that vacant and abandoned properties exert a negative spillover effect that can induce a succession of vacancy and abandonment over time. This research concludes with a discussion about its planning implications regarding neighborhood transition and disaster recovery.
Land Lines Feature Article: Land Readjustment for Urban Development and Post-Disaster Reconstruction
Land Lines Feature Article: Land Readjustment for Urban Development and Post-Disaster Reconstruction
JANUARY 10, 2012
Land Readjustment for Urban Development and Post-Disaster Reconstruction
Yu-Hung Hong and Isabel Brain
A long-established land management tool, land readjustment, has attracted recent attention and is being adopted to assist post-earthquake reconstruction efforts in Chile. It emphasizes the integration of the urban economy, city planning, law, and governance with land management to form a comprehensive urban development or upgrading strategy.
The January 2012 issue of the Land Lines quarterly magazine (vol 24, no 1) can be viewed here.
Students’ Class Project Looking at Winter Storm Awareness in Blacksburg
Students’ Class Project Looking at Winter Storm Awareness in Blacksburg
JANUARY 6, 2012
The Town of Blacksburg is vulnerable to winter storm hazards. Students in my class did a project to gauge the awareness, preparation, and perception of government capability of the citizens in the Town of Blacksburg regarding the winter storm hazard.
From the left to the right, they are Xiaoxuan Peng (Master of Urban and Regional Planning), Amy M. Hubbard (Environmental Policy and Planning), Michael E. George (Junior Honors, Environmental Policy and Planning, Landscape Architecture).
This is an IRB approved class project (Virginia Tech IRB Approval Letter, Survey Questionnaire). Also, this group has created a project website which includes details on the methodology, findings and policy recommendations.
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