About
"Research expertise in pedometrics and digital soil mapping (25+ years)."
"Specialized in carbon quantification, carbon budgeting, and carbon simulation modeling in support of soil & crop health, carbon marketing, carbon crediting --- to build a carbon neutral future!"
"Early adopter of AI (machine learning and deep learning) since the early 90s'."
"Passion for geoscience, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), geostatistics, geospatial data and technologies"
"Sensing technology is rapid, cost-effective, and indispensable to assess soil, crop, and ecosystem properties: Proximal soil sensing (visible-near-infrared and mid-infrared spectroscopy) and remote sensing."
"Her goals are to assess, predict, model, and optimize carbon through climate smart agricultural management practices --- maximize land-based carbon sequestration and minimize greenhouse gas emissions."
"Mantra of Grunwald: Integrate understanding of the totality of ecosystems: soils, land, nature, people, and culture,"
Pronouns: She/her/hers
"Life depends on fertile and healthy soils: Importance of soil health, soil care, soil security, carbon-smart management, soil indices, soil functions, and understanding soil variation soil-climate-human interactions."
"Expertise in a variety of modeling approaches in soil, water and ecosystem sciences: AI, statistical methods, deterministic / mechanistic process-based modeling, hybrid stochastic-deterministic modeling, Data Envelopment Analysis, ordination methods, optimization methods, geostatistical methods, fuzzy logic, Bayesian methods,....."
"Motivation for her research in agro-forest, conservation, and urban ecosystems: (1) Food, soil, environmental and human security; (2) address the impact of global climate change and socio-economic change on land and its use."
"Bringing mindfulness to research and teaching means being present and attentive to the technical task at hand, open and curious to scientific inquiry, aware of innovations and complexities in ecosystems, in awe of rapid scientific and technological progress, and accept that findings may be confirmatory, surprising or paradoxical."
M.Sc. (Dipl. Ingenieur) Environmental Science and Development of Rural Areas. Justus-Liebig University, Germany (1992)
Ph.D. Environmental Science. Justus-Liebig University Giessen, Germany (1996)
Integral Studies Graduate Certificate. Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, CA (2013)
Authentic Leadership Graduate Certificate. Naropa University, Boulder, CO (2015)
Ph.D. Integral and Transpersonal Psychology. School of Consciousness and Transformation, California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA (2021)
Academic Work Experience
Professor, Pedometrics, Landscape Analysis, and GIS. Soil, Water and Ecosystem Sciences Department, University of Florida (UF), USA (8/2010 - present)
Grunwald is affiliated faculty member with the UF AI & Informatics Institute, ICGIS Concentration, Florida Climate Institute, Water Institute, and Center for Spirituality and Health.
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Director of UF Mindfulness (5/2015 - present)
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Director and Coordinator of Distance Education. Soil and Water Sciences Department, University of Florida, USA (11/2001 - 5/2011)
Associate Professor. Soil and Water Sciences Department, University of Florida, USA (8/2006 - 8/2010)
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Affiliate Professor. Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, USA (8/2005 - present)
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Affiliate Professor. School of Natural Resources, University of Florida, USA (3/2003 - present)
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Assistant Professor. Soil and Water Sciences Department, University of Florida, USA (8/2001 - 8/2006)
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Research Scientist and GIS Manager. Heidelberg College, Ohio, USA (3/2000 - 7/2001)
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Post-Doctoral Associate. Department of Soil Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin, USA (8/1997 - 3/2000)
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Post-Doctoral Associate. Department of Natural Resources, Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany (1/1997 - 8/1997)
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Significant Academic Highlights
Grunwald received the prestigious Soil Science Research Award (2023) from the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA). This award demonstrates extraordinary research creativity, excellence in research, and significant and impactful soil science research.
Grunwald's research publications are highly cited (>10,220 citations); her H-index was 53 and i10-index 112 (7/2023) based on Google Scholar.
She is the Chief Editor of Frontiers Soil Science Journal, Pedometrics section (9/2020 - present) and serves on the Editorial Board of Sensors J., section Smart Agriculture (11/2021 - present). Grunwald served as Associate Editor for several international journals incl. Geoderma and Soil Sci. Am. J.
Grunwald has been Principal Investigator (PI) and Co-PI of several large-scale inter- and transdisciplinary research projects funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food & Agric. (NIFA).
Graduate students advised by Grunwald have an outstanding record of receiving awards and publishing research results; and many of them have created successful professional careers.
Grunwald was ranked among the World's Top 2% of Scientists based on the global Stanford University ranking list (2022).
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"I am so grateful to my research team and science collaborators to make this come true, thank you!"
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Grunwald's Honors at the University of Florida (UF): UF Term Professorship (2019-2020); UF Research Foundation Professorship (2017-2020 and 2010-2012).
Members of Grunwald's research team have given 500+ presentations at conferences out of which a large proportion was at international and national meetings.
International research and capacity building engagement in Europe, Latin America, Australia, Asia, and Africa.
She has been member and held leadership positions in the Pedometrics Commission, International Union of Soil Science (IUSS).
Grunwald earned the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) Fellow Award (2017). Only up to 0.3 percent of all SSSA members are elected fellow; very few woman have been elected SSSA Fellow.
She was granted the Teacher Fellow International Award of the North American Colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences (NACTA) (2010).
She was Director of Distance Education in the Soil and Water Science Department, UF. Grunwald was
instrumental to develop and provide leadership to develop and coordinate multiple distance education graduate curricula and certificate programs (2001-2011); she served as tech-innovator for online teaching (e.g., virtual labs and EcoLearnIT).
She provided leadership to create and lead the interdisciplinary University of Florida (UF) Mindfulness Program serving 16 colleges (students, staff, and faculty members). The program was awarded the UF Champions for Change Award (2016).
Personal Interests
Reading, diverse genres.
Enjoying the beauty of nature, soils, the environment and the ocean; swimming and hiking.
Mindfulness meditation; exploration of consciousness and mind; nonduality; Vajrayana.
Transpersonal psychology; psycho-spiritualities; feminine spiritualities.
Exploring spaciousness, timelessness, and mystery of life.
Sci-Fi movies, dramas, and documentaries.