Alexander Buyantuev

Department Chair; Associate Professor; Program Director for Masters in Geographic Information Science
College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Geography, Planning, and Sustainability
Alexander Buyantuev - CV
Alexander Buyantuev.

Contact

Arts & Sciences 226
518-442-4776
[email protected]
Education

PhD, Plant Biology, Arizona State University, 2018

MS, Renewable Natural Resources, University of Arizona, Tucson, 2002

PhD, Geography, Russian Academy of Sciences, Irkutsk, 1996

MS, Geography, Irkutsk State University, Irkutsk, Russia, 1993

About

My research examines interactions between spatial patterns and ecological processes across scales, with an emphasis on land use and land cover change, vegetation dynamics, and ecosystem functioning. I am particularly interested in understanding trade-offs and synergies among ecosystem services, including food production, biodiversity conservation, recreational opportunities, and water and air quality. I conduct spatial and temporal analyses using remote sensing and GIS tools, with a focus on time series derived from satellite and unmanned aircraft imagery.

Research

Alexander Buyantuev on Google Scholar

Research Interests
  • Land Use/Cover changes
  • Landscape Ecology
  • Ecosystem Services
  • Remote Sensing and GIS
  • Unmanned Aircraft Systems 
Grants/Funding

“Acquisition of a small Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) for natural and urban ecosystem studies and risk disaster management” (PI), National Science Foundation - MRI (2015-18). Amount: $147,983

“Urban Climate Adaptation of Forest Ecosystems with Disadvantaged Communities and Youth in Albany, New York” (Co-PI), USDA (2024-29). Amount: $5,000,000

“An Investigation of Food System Localization Efforts in New York Municipalities: Projects, Practices and Policies” (Co-PI), New York Health Foundation (2022). Amount: $150,000

“Monumentality and the Las Mercedes Chiefdom, Costa Rica: An Application of Drone-Mounted Remote Sensing” (Co-PI), National Geographic Society (2017-18). Amount: $14,213

“Effects of rapid urbanization on ecosystem processes: a case study in the Hohhot-Baotou region of Inner Mongolia” (PI), Natural Science Foundation of China (2010-12). Amount: 320,000 Chinese Yuan

“Hyperspectral, thermal, and LiDAR imaging with unmanned aircrafts for studies of vegetation phenology and archaeological mapping” (PI). Faculty Research Award Programs (FRAP-B), University at Albany (2018-20). Amount: $3,981

“Bridging forest phenology at the individual, community, and landscape scales in the urban-rural interface of Albany County using spaceborne and UAV-acquired near surface imagery” (PI) Faculty Research Award Programs (FRAP-A), UAlbany (2015-17). Amount: $9,824

“A data request for local food systems research: economic conditions of a local food system before and during COVID-19” (PI). Faculty Research Award Programs (FRAP-B), University at Albany (2021-22). Amount: $3,150

“Geospatial Applications of Drones: the acquisition of small toy aircrafts in support of the AGOG 307 course” (PI) Creating Highly Engaging Education Resources (CHEER), University at Albany (2018) Amount: $244.04

Publications
  1. Arenberg, Mary, Alexander Buyantuev, and April Roggio. “Successful Governance? Evaluating the State of Phosphorus Management in the United States: A Case Study of the Hudson-Hoosic, New York Watershed Community.” Ecology & Society (In review)
  2. Wu, Jianguo, Alexander Buyantuev, Ignacio Fernandez, Josh Gilman, G. Darrel Jenerette, and Xin Wang. “Forty Milestones in Landscape Ecology: Commemorating the 40th Anniversary of the Allerton Park Workshop.” Landscape Ecology 39, no. 12 (2024): 216.
  3. Luna-Reyes, Luis, April Roggio, Alexander Buyantuev, Jason R. Evans, and Eliot Rich. An Investigation of Food System Localization Efforts in New York Municipalities: Projects, Practices and Policies, Survey Report. 2024.
  4. Roggio, April, Beomgeun Cho, Luis Luna-Reyes, Jason R. Evans, Eliot Rich, and Alexander Buyantuev. An Investigation of Food System Localization Efforts in New York Municipalities: Projects, Practices and Policies. 2023.
  5. Huang, Yen-Hua, Kyrre Kausrud, Ayesha Hassim, et al. “Environmental Drivers of Biseasonal Anthrax Outbreak Dynamics in Two Multihost Savanna Systems.” Ecological Monographs 92 (2022): e1526.
  6. Natole Jr, Michael, Yiming Ying, Alexander Buyantuev, Michael Stessin, Victor Buyantuev, and Andrei Lapenis. “Patterns of Mega-Forest Fires in East Siberia Will Become Less Predictable with Climate Warming.” Environmental Advances 4 (2021): 100041.
  7. Yan, Yongzhi, Qing Zhang, Alexander Buyantuev, Qingfu Liu, and Jianming Niu. “Plant Functional β Diversity Is an Important Mediator of Effects of Aridity on Soil Multifunctionality.” Science of the Total Environment 726 (2020): 138529.
  8. Zhang, Qing, Alexander Buyantuev, Xuening Fang, et al. “Ecology and Sustainability of the Inner Mongolian Grassland: Looking Back and Moving Forward.” Landscape Ecology 35, no. 11 (2020): 2413–32.
  9. Frazier, Amy E., Brett A. Bryan, Alexander Buyantuev, et al. “Ecological Civilization: Perspectives from Landscape Ecology and Landscape Sustainability Science.” Landscape Ecology 34, no. 1 (2019): 1–8.
  10. Lapenis, Andrei G., George Robinson, Clare Gaffey, Maurizio Mencuccini, Alexander Buyantuev, and Shiguo Jiang. “Linking Radial Growth Phenology to Reflection Indexes in Coniferous Species.” AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts 2019 (2019): B33K-2644.
  11. Zhang, Jing, Xueming Li, Alexander Buyantuev, Tongliga Bao, and Xuefeng Zhang. “How Do Trade-Offs and Synergies between Ecosystem Services Change in the Long Period? The Case Study of Uxin, Inner Mongolia, China.” Sustainability 11, no. 21 (2019): 6041.
  12. Zhang, Zhiming, Bin Wang, Alexander Buyantuev, et al. “Urban Agglomeration of Kunming and Yuxi Cities in Yunnan, China: The Relative Importance of Government Policy Drivers and Environmental Constraints.” Landscape Ecology 34, no. 3 (2019): 663–79.
  13. Liu, Qingfu, Yanyun Zhao, Xuefeng Zhang, Alexander Buyantuev, Jianming Niu, and Xiaojiang Wang. “Spatiotemporal Patterns of Desertification Dynamics and Desertification Effects on Ecosystem Services in the Mu Us Desert in China.” Sustainability 10, no. 3 (2018): 589.
  14. Liu, Qingfu, Alexander Buyantuev, Jianguo Wu, Jianming Niu, Deyong Yu, and Qing Zhang. “Intensive Land-Use Drives Regional-Scale Homogenization of Plant Communities.” Science of the Total Environment 644 (2018): 806–14.
  15. Luan, Xia-li, Alexander Buyantuev, Albert Hans Baur, et al. “Linking Greenhouse Gas Emissions to Urban Landscape Structure: The Relevance of Spatial and Thematic Resolutions of Land Use/Cover Data.” Landscape Ecology 33, no. 7 (2018): 1211–24.
  16. Gervais, Norman, Alexander Buyantuev, and Feng Gao. “Modeling the Effects of the Urban Built-up Environment on Plant Phenology Using Fused Satellite Data.” Remote Sensing 9, no. 1 (2017): 99.
  17. Lapenis, Andrei G., Gregory B. Lawrence, Alexander Buyantuev, et al. “A Newly Identified Role of the Deciduous Forest Floor in the Timing of Green‐up.” Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences 122 (2017).
  18. Zhang, Qing, Alexander Buyantuev, Frank Yonghong Li, et al. “Functional Dominance Rather than Taxonomic Diversity and Functional Diversity Mainly Affects Community Aboveground Biomass in the Inner Mongolia Grassland.” Ecology and Evolution 7, no. 5 (2017): 1605–15.
  19. Declet-Barreto, Juan, Kim Knowlton, G. Darrel Jenerette, and Alexander Buyantuev. “Effects of Urban Vegetation on Mitigating Exposure of Vulnerable Populations to Excessive Heat in Cleveland, Ohio.” Weather, Climate, and Society 8, no. 4 (2016): 507–24.
  20. Jenerette, G. Darrel, Sharon Harlan, Alexander Buyantuev, and et al. “Micro-Scale Urban Surface Temperatures Are Related to Land-Cover Features and Residential Heat Related Health Impacts in Phoenix, AZ USA.” Landscape Ecology 31, no. 4 (2016): 745–60.
  21. Han, Fang, Sarula Kang, Alexander Buyantuev, et al. “Effects of Climate Change on Primary Production in the Inner Mongolia Plateau, China.” International Journal of Remote Sensing 37, no. 23 (2016): 5551–64.
  22. Lapenis, Andrei G., Gregory Brad Lawrence, Alexander Buyantuev, et al. “Spring Phenology—A Newly Identified Ecophysiological Role of the Deciduous Forest Floor.” AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts 2016 (2016): B41I-04.
  23. Zhang, Xuefeng, Jianming Niu, Alexander Buyantuev, et al. “Understanding Grassland Degradation and Restoration from the Perspective of Ecosystem Services: A Case Study of the Xilin River Basin in Inner Mongolia, China.” Sustainability 8, no. 7 (2016): 594.
  24. Zhang, Q., Jianguo Wu, A. Buyantuev, et al. “Plant Species Diversity Is Correlated with Climatic Factors Differently at the Community and the Functional Group Levels: A Case Study of Desert Steppe in Inner Mongolia, China.” Plant Biosystems-An International Journal Dealing with All Aspects of Plant Biology 150, no. 1 (2016): 121–23.
  25. Han, Fang, Qing Zhang, Alexander Buyantuev, et al. “Effects of Climate Change on Phenology and Primary Productivity in the Desert Steppe of Inner Mongolia.” Journal of Arid Land 7, no. 2 (2015): 251–63.
  26. Mao, Qizheng, Ganlin Huang, Alexander Buyantuev, Jianguo Wu, Shanghua Luo, and Keming Ma. “Spatial Heterogeneity of Urban Soils: The Case of the Beijing Metropolitan Region, China.” Ecological Processes 3, no. 1 (2014): 23.
  27. Stephens, Scott L., Neil Burrows, Alexander Buyantuyev, et al. “Temperate and Boreal Forest Mega‐fires: Characteristics and Challenges.” Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 12, no. 2 (2014): 115–22.
  28. Zhang, Jing, JianMing Niu, Tongliga Bao, et al. “Human Induced Dryland Degradation in Ordos Plateau, China, Revealed by Multilevel Statistical Modeling of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index and Rainfall Time-Series.” Journal of Arid Land 6, no. 2 (2014): 219–29.
  29. Zhang, Jing, Jianming Niu, Alexander Buyantuev, and Jianguo Wu. “A Multilevel Analysis of Effects of Land Use Policy on Land-Cover Change and Local Land Use Decisions.” Journal of Arid Environments 108 (2014): 19–28.
  30. Jenerette, D., A. Buyantuyev, S. Harlan, S. Grossman-Clarke, B. L. Ruddell, and S. W. Myint. “Urban Surface Temperature Vulnerability Assessments.” AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts 2013 (2013): H12F-04.
  31. Jenerette, G. Darrel, Greg Miller, Alexander Buyantuev, Diane E. Pataki, Thomas W. Gillespie, and Stephanie Pincetl. “Urban Vegetation and Income Segregation in Drylands: A Synthesis of Seven Metropolitan Regions in the Southwestern United States.” Environmental Research Letters 8, no. 4 (2013): 044001.
  32. Zhang, Chi, Jianguo Wu, Nancy B. Grimm, Melissa McHale, and Alexander Buyantuyev. “A Hierarchical Patch Mosaic Ecosystem Model for Urban Landscapes: Model Development and Evaluation.” Ecological Modelling 250 (2013): 81–100.
  33. Buyantuyev, Alexander, and Jianguo Wu. “Urbanization Diversifies Land Surface Phenology in Arid Environments: Interactions among Vegetation, Climatic Variation, and Land Use Pattern in the Phoenix Metropolitan Region, USA.” Landscape and Urban Planning 105, nos. 1–2 (2012): 149–59.
  34. Buyantuyev, Alexander, Pengyan Xu, Jianguo Wu, Shunji Piao, and Dachuan Wang. “A Space-for-Time (SFT) Substitution Approach to Studying Historical Phenological Changes in Urban Environment.” PLoS One 7, no. 12 (2012): e51260.
  35. Wu, Jianguo, Alexander Buyantuyev, G. Darrel Jenerette, Jennifer Litteral, Kaesha Neil, and Weijun Shen. “Quantifying Spatiotemporal Patterns and Ecological Effects of Urbanization: A Multiscale Landscape Approach.” In Applied Urban Ecology: A Global Framework. Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2012.
  36. Zhang, Qing, Jian Ming Niu, S. B. Wu, Alexander Buyantuyev, and Jian Jun Dong. “Impact of Climatic Factors on Genetic Diversity of Stipa Breviflora Populations in Inner Mongolia.” Genetics and Molecular Research 11, no. 3 (2012): 2081–93.
  37. ZHANG, Qing, Jian-Ming NIU, Alexander BUYANTUYEV, et al. “Vegetation Differentiation and Soil Effect at Different Slope Locations—a Case Study of Stipa Breviflora Grassland in Inner Mongolia, China.” Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology 35, no. 11 (2011): 1167.
  38. Zhang, Qing, Jianming Niu, Alexander Buyantuyev, Jing Zhang, Yong Ding, and Jianjun Dong. “Productivity–Species Richness Relationship Changes from Unimodal to Positive Linear with Increasing Spatial Scale in the Inner Mongolia Steppe.” Ecological Research 26, no. 3 (2011): 649–58.
  39. Buyantuyev, Alexander, and Jianguo Wu. “Urban Heat Islands and Landscape Heterogeneity: Linking Spatiotemporal Variations in Surface Temperatures to Land-Cover and Socioeconomic Patterns.” Landscape Ecology 25, no. 1 (2010): 17–33.
  40. Buyantuyev, Alexander, Jianguo Wu, and Corinna Gries. “Multiscale Analysis of the Urbanization Pattern of the Phoenix Metropolitan Landscape of USA: Time, Space and Thematic Resolution.” Landscape and Urban Planning 94, nos. 3–4 (2010): 206–17.
  41. Myint, Soe W., Anthony Brazel, Gregory Okin, and Alexander Buyantuyev. “Combined Effects of Impervious Surface and Vegetation Cover on Air Temperature Variations in a Rapidly Expanding Desert City.” GIScience & Remote Sensing 47, no. 3 (2010): 301–20.
  42. Buyantuyev, A., and Jianguo Wu. “Urbanization Alters Spatiotemporal Patterns of Ecosystem Primary Production: A Case Study of the Phoenix Metropolitan Region, USA.” Journal of Arid Environments 73, nos. 4–5 (2009): 512–20.
  43. Ruddell, Darren M., Sharon L. Harlan, Susanne Grossman-Clarke, and Alexander Buyantuyev. “Risk and Exposure to Extreme Heat in Microclimates of Phoenix, AZ.” In Geospatial Techniques in Urban Hazard and Disaster Analysis. Springer Netherlands Dordrecht, 2009.
  44. Buyantuyev, Alexander. “Effects of Urbanization on Landscape Pattern and Ecosystem Function in Phoenix: A Multiscale Study.” Arizona State University, 2008.
  45. Kaye, J. P., A. Majumdar, C. Gries, et al. “Hierarchical Bayesian Scaling of Soil Properties across Urban, Agricultural, and Desert Ecosystems.” Ecological Applications 18, no. 1 (2008): 132–45.
  46. Bai, Yongfei, Jianguo Wu, Qingmin Pan, et al. “Positive Linear Relationship between Productivity and Diversity: Evidence from the Eurasian Steppe.” Journal of Applied Ecology 44, no. 5 (2007): 1023–34.
  47. Buyantuyev, A., Jianguo Wu, and C. Gries. “Estimating Vegetation Cover in an Urban Environment Based on Landsat ETM+ Imagery: A Case Study in Phoenix, USA.” International Journal of Remote Sensing 28, no. 2 (2007): 269–91.
  48. Buyantuyev, Alexander, and Jianguo Wu. “Effects of Thematic Resolution on Landscape Pattern Analysis.” Landscape Ecology 22, no. 1 (2007): 7–13.

Instruction & Advising

Courses
  • AGOG484 / AGOG584 / APLN551 Remote Sensing I
  • AGOG485 / AGOG585 / APLN553 Remote Sensing II
  • AGOG 424 / AGOG 524 Landscape Ecology
  • AGOG 592 GIS Project Development
  • AGOG 101 Introduction to the Physical Environment
  • AGOG 307 Geospatial Applications of Drones
     

Additional Information

Awards & Honors
  • Outstanding Paper in Landscape Ecology annual award (2017)
  • Tony Gonzales Excellence in GIS scholarship, Arizona Geographic Information Council (2007)
     
Service & Outreach
  • Chair, Department of Geography, Planning, and Sustainability (2025 -)
  • Program Director, Master of Arts in Geography program (2018-23)
  • Program Director, Master of Science in Geographic Information Science program (2025 -)
  • Program Director, Graduate Certificate in Geospatial AI and Big Data Analytics (2025 -)
  • Director, Minor in Sustainability degree (2024 -)
  • Editorial Board Member, Landscape Ecology (2019 - )
     
In the News

UAlbany Drones to Provide Unique Insights into Vegetation Change and Severe Weather in Capital Region through NSF-Funded Study

Research Grounded Yet Lofty

Digging World History

Alex Buyantuev awarded a CHEER grant

Geography and Planning Master’s student talks about his research on the use of drones to study wildlife

Geospatial Student Spotlight: Christopher Plummer

Eureka! Program Powers Girls to Succeed in STEM Field

UAlbany Researchers Awarded $5 Million by U.S. Department of Agriculture to Improve Local Urban Forestry

UAlbany Celebrates Geographic Information Systems Day

Global Celebration of Geographical Information Systems Recognized at UAlbany

UAlbany’s Institute for Transformational and Ecosystem-based Climate Adaptation

UAlbany Students Take Research to New Heights