Welcome to my GitHub Academic Page! My name is Abhinav Shrestha, I go by 'Abhi' for short (pronouced /ɑː-biː/; अभिनव in Nepali). I am a PhD researcher at the Chair of Ecosystem Dynamics and Forest Management in Mountain Forests (EDFM) at the Technische Universität München (Technical University of Munich, TUM) School of Life Sciences.

Academic background: I am a M.S. graduate from the University of Idaho (2024), where I worked with Dr. Jeffrey Hicke in the Ecological Geography lab, Department of Earth and Spatial Sciences.

Previous employement: Remote Sensing and Geospatial Specialist, RedCastle Resources, Inc.. I served as a federal contractor to the USDA Forest Service’s Geospatial Office (GO).

For more information on my professional and academic experience, please navigate to the CV page.

Research

PhD Research

Current research focuses on studying the changes and function of mountain forests in the Alps using modeling, remote sensing and geospatial analyses. The core project I will be working: TUM Zentrum für Alpine Waldwirtschaft, ZAW (TUM Center for Alpine Forest Management)

🚧 The research and project are in the early development phase ⏳. Updates will be made as they are available! 🚧

M.S. Research

My M.S. research project focused on evaluating methods of detecting forest insect damage and mortality using Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS)-derived data products in conifer forests of the western United States. I was particularly interested in the utlity of UAS Structure-from-Motion (SfM) derived photogrammetric point cloud data for the 3D classification and characterization of tree damage of a given study area (UAS mission area).

Please refer to the M.S. Research page for details on the MS research project

Graduate Research (collaborations)

I also worked on various collaborative research projects with different departments within the University of Idaho and with different institutions such as NASA, Washington State University, and USDA Forest Service.

Undergraduate Research

I earned my B.A. in Biology and Environmental Science from Coe College, Cedar Rapids, IA in 2019. I worked with my honor’s thesis advisor, Dr. Paula Sanchini from the Department of Biology, in a multi-year (2016-2019) GIS-based study on geographical preferences of tree species in a local state park.

Please refer to the Research Portfolio page for details on collaborative graduate and undergraduate research

📖 Check out the ‘Publications and Repositories’ page for links to published journal articles, theses, presentations, and GitHub repositories 📖

Outside Academia (get to know me!)

Besides countless hours spent working with GIS/remote sensing, imagery, point clouds, code, and photogrammetry. I love playing and watching soccer, spending my free time going on a run/staying active, combing through thrift stores to find hidden gems, and trying out local cuisines!

I recieved my undergraduate degree in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and spent 2 more years working there as a Quality Control Lab Analyst at ADM. I spent a total of 6 years in Iowa and its safe to say I feel like an honorary Midwesterner! I speak Nepali as my native language and I am fluent in English, Hindi, and Urdu.