About
Research shaped across disciplines, institutions and regions.
My work has evolved from water resources and environmental analysis to Earth observation, GeoAI and evidence-grounded applied AI—while retaining a consistent focus on useful, defensible research.
Duong Cao Phan is a Research Scientist working at the intersection of applied artificial intelligence, geospatial science, Earth observation and environmental research.
He holds a PhD in Environmental Sciences from the University of Tsukuba and has more than 15 years of experience across environmental monitoring, GIS, quantitative spatial analysis and applied decision support.
He is currently a project-funded Research Scientist at CeADAR, University College Dublin. His recent work spans AI for climate-resilient agriculture, mangrove and blue-carbon monitoring, national-scale geospatial analysis, generative AI, retrieval-augmented generation and evidence-grounded research prototypes.
Previously, he conducted research and supported teaching at the University of Tsukuba and collaborated with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency on national and regional land-use and land-cover mapping. Earlier in his career, he worked on climate change, flood risk, hydrology and water-resources research in Vietnam.
Across these roles, his work has connected scientific research with reproducible technical workflows, stakeholder needs, research communication and practical decision support.
Career
A research trajectory from environmental systems to applied AI.
- 2023–present
Research Scientist
CeADAR, School of Computer Science, University College Dublin, Ireland
- 2016–2022
Teaching/Research Assistant & Research Collaborator
University of Tsukuba and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Japan
- 2010–2016
National/International Consultant & Researcher
Vietnam Academy for Water Resources, Vietnam
- 2007–2010
Undergraduate Research/Teaching Assistant
Thuy Loi University, Vietnam
Education
PhD in Environmental Sciences
High Distinction · University of Tsukuba, Japan
MSc in Environmental Sciences
High Distinction · University of Tsukuba, Japan
BSc in Civil Engineering
Distinction · Thuy Loi University, Vietnam
Teaching, mentoring & service
Experience includes university teaching support, graduate mentoring, supervision of research contributors, stakeholder training, journal reviewing and academic editorial service.
- Reviewer for more than 10 academic journals.
- Review Editor, Tropical Forests.
- Editorial Manager, Remote Sensing Applications: Society and Environment.
- Mentoring in remote sensing, GIS, machine learning, programming and research methodology.