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.