Rate My Professor Tuuli Toivonen

Tuuli Toivonen is Professor of Geoinformatics in the Department of Geosciences and Geography at the University of Helsinki, Faculty of Science, where she leads the multidisciplinary Digital Geography Lab comprising around 15 researchers. She earned her PhD from the University of Turku in 2006 with the dissertation titled 'Landscape Information in Quantitative Biogeography – in search of a balance between resolution and extent'. In 2023, she obtained a Specialist Vocational Qualification in Leadership and Business Management. Toivonen served as Director of the Geography Degree Programmes from 2020 to 2022 and currently holds the position of Vice-director of the Degree Programmes. She has taught geoinformatics at the university level for over 20 years, acted as Vice-chair of the DENVI doctoral programme for several years, and is a Life Member of Clare Hall, Cambridge University since 2021. Her career includes serving as principal investigator or project manager on initiatives such as MetropAccess, Social media data for Conservation science, and Carbon Footprint of Nature-Based Travels: Insights from Digital Footprints.

Toivonen's research examines the dynamics of people and places and their interactions in urban and natural environments through the lenses of accessibility and mobility. She develops approaches leveraging open and big data sources, spatial analytics, and machine learning to contribute to urban geography, land use and transport planning, sustainability science, and conservation geography. She has received major awards including the ERC Consolidator Grant for the GREENTRAVEL project in 2022, the European Open Data Champion recognition in 2017, the Open Science Prize shared in 2017, and the Geography Award of the University of Helsinki in 2018. Key publications include 'Quantitative conservation geography' (Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 2022), 'A travel time matrix data set for the Helsinki region 2023' (Scientific Data, 2024), 'Green and blue spaces matter for active mobility: Results from mapping perceived environmental exposure in five European cities' (Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 2025), and 'Capturing urban diversity through languages: long-term changes' (2024). As a supervisor and opponent for numerous doctoral theses, pre-examiner, and active member of Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science and Helsinki Institute of Urban and Regional Studies, her contributions advance fair and sustainable societies through data-driven spatial insights.