At Bronx Community College, a small but powerful lab is helping students turn data into real-world impact. The Geospatial Center of the CUNY CREST Institute introduces students to a fast-growing field that combines maps, data, and technology to better understand the world around us. 

Put simply, geospatial technology is about using images—often taken from satellites—to study places on Earth. But what happens inside the lab goes far beyond maps. Students analyze everything from green space and walkability to building structures and environmental conditions—helping answer important questions about public health, city planning, and climate change. 

“Ultimately, we’re using data to improve how people live,” said Sunil Bhaskaran, founding director of the center who was recently named a U.S. Department of State Fulbright Specialist. “If we can turn satellite images into meaningful insights, those insights can help guide better decisions for communities.” 

During a recent visit, students described their work in refreshingly practical terms. One intern explained that she was analyzing satellite images of a city in Texas to identify features like parks, vegetation, and water. Those details can help paint a clearer picture of how neighborhoods support—or limit—people’s health and well-being. 

Another student demonstrated how they “train” computers to recognize elements in an image—like buildings, trees, or soil—by marking them point by point. While the process may sound technical, the goal is simple: teach computers to quickly interpret massive amounts of visual data that would take humans years to analyze. 

That kind of work has real-world applications. The center supports projects tied to public policy, urban planning, and environmental research. Students also have opportunities to participate in NASA-supported research and partnerships, working with real satellite data and contributing to studies that can inform decision-making at the local and national levels. 

The center opens doors for students exploring careers in data science, artificial intelligence, environmental studies, and urban planning. Many come in with backgrounds in business or data analytics and gain hands-on experience in emerging tools like machine and deep learning. For some, it’s their first opportunity to work on large-scale, real-world projects. 

Equally important is the collaborative environment. Students work closely with faculty and with each other, building not only technical skills, but also curiosity and resilience. As one student shared, research involves constant learning and problem-solving—“you have to keep exploring.” 

Through the current NASA project, Modeling interactions between land use land cover changes, biophysical, socio-economic drivers and climate change with HLS-VC data cubes for developing an urban climate- change decision support system, the Geospatial Center offers research internship opportunities that presents students with opportunities to solve real world problems using geospatial-AI. While the technology may be complex, the mission is simple: give students the skills to make sense of data and use it to create positive change. 

In a world increasingly shaped by data, that’s a powerful advantage—and one that’s taking shape right here at BCC. 

For more information, contact Professor Sunil Bhaskaran [Sunil.Bhaskaran@bcc.cuny.edu].