Smart Cities and Connected Communities
Integrating people, data, devices, infrastructure, and institutions to realize the potential of communities.
Research Projects
REU Supplement: SCC-IRG Track 1: Inclusive Public Transit Toolkit to Assess Quality of Service Across Socioeconomic Status in Baltimore City
Principal Investigator(s): Vanessa Frias-Martinez Jessica Vitak Christopher Antoun
Funder: National Science Foundation
Research Areas: Accessibility and Inclusive Design > Future of Work > Human-Computer Interaction > Smart Cities and Connected Communities
Principal Investigator(s): Vanessa Frias-Martinez Jessica Vitak Christopher Antoun
Funder: National Science Foundation
Research Areas: Accessibility and Inclusive Design > Future of Work > Human-Computer Interaction > Smart Cities and Connected Communities
Detecting and Mapping War-induced Damage to Agricultural Fields in Ukraine using Multi-Modal Remote Sensing Data
Principal Investigator(s): Sergii Skakun
Funder: NASA - Proposal Only Other Federal
Research Areas: Data Science, Analytics, and Visualization > Human-Computer Interaction > Machine Learning, AI, Computational Linguistics, and Information Retrieval > Smart Cities and Connected Communities > Social Networks, Online Communities, and Social Media
Principal Investigator(s): Sergii Skakun
Funder: NASA - Proposal Only Other Federal
Research Areas: Data Science, Analytics, and Visualization > Human-Computer Interaction > Machine Learning, AI, Computational Linguistics, and Information Retrieval > Smart Cities and Connected Communities > Social Networks, Online Communities, and Social Media
NSF Convergence Accelerator Track J: MidAtlantic Food Resiliency Network – Securing the Future of Food through a Multi-Mindset Approach
Principal Investigator(s): Vanessa Frias-Martinez
Funder: National Science Foundation
Research Areas: Data Science, Analytics, and Visualization > Smart Cities and Connected Communities
The Mid-Atlantic Food Resiliency Network (MFRN) aims to improve food security in the Mid-Atlantic, starting in Prince George’s County. Collaborating across multiple disciplines, the MFRN will develop tools and systems to reduce hunger, waste, and food deserts. Initiatives include understanding food behaviors, repurposing food waste, and training future food security leaders.
Principal Investigator(s): Vanessa Frias-Martinez
Funder: National Science Foundation
Research Areas: Data Science, Analytics, and Visualization > Smart Cities and Connected Communities
The Mid-Atlantic Food Resiliency Network (MFRN) aims to improve food security in the Mid-Atlantic, starting in Prince George’s County. Collaborating across multiple disciplines, the MFRN will develop tools and systems to reduce hunger, waste, and food deserts. Initiatives include understanding food behaviors, repurposing food waste, and training future food security leaders.
Faculty
Staff
Recent News

From leveraging AI for pedestrian safety to creating better touchscreen kiosks, the Maryland Initiative for Digital Accessibility brings together scientists across campus to transform existing and emerging tech for people with disabilities. (Illustration by iStock) Photo via Maryland Today.
Maryland Today: Making Tech Accessible—With Benefits for All
INFO faculty lead groundbreaking research to make kiosks, PDFs, AI, and everyday technologies accessible for all
Photo licensed by Adobe Stock via Chanelle Malambo/peopleimages.com.
Turning Hand-Planted Seeds into Data-Driven Harvests
An iConsultancy partnership with Roots Africa helps the organization maximize their data
Led by the University of Maryland, TRAILS was launched in May 2023 with a $20 million award from the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The institute is focused on developing, building and modeling participatory research that—over time—will increase trust in AI. Illustration courtesy of TRAILS. Image via Maryland Today.