Todd BenDor

Distinguished Professor of Sustainable Community Design

Biography

Todd BenDor is the Distinguished Professor of Sustainable Community Design in the UNC Institute for the Environment and the Department of City and Regional Planning. He is also the director of UNC’s Odum Institute for Research in Social Sciences, a social data science center that helps students, faculty and staff improve the quality, rigor and reproducibility of their research through consultation and training. BenDor’s research and teaching focus on improving ecological restoration and climate adaptation policies. His research uses qualitative, statistical, and simulation modeling methods to improve: 1) implementation of environmental markets, such as wetland and stream mitigation, water quality trading and endangered species mitigation markets, 2) our understanding of the environmental impacts of urban growth and change, 3) policies aimed at urban resilience, including floodplain buyouts and flood insurance, and 4) how we approach and engage in environmental conflict resolution. BenDor is a faculty member in UNC’s Environment, Ecology, and Energy Program. He holds a B.S. from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, an M.S. from Washington State University and a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He officially lost his amateur status after winning $40 in a billiards tournament in college.

Education

Ph.D., Regional Planning, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2007