Nick Santos

Research Software Engineer

Nick Santos is a programmer, GIS specialist, instructor, web developer, and environmentalist. Nick works at the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) at the University of California, Merced where he develops models, software, databases, and applications to help analyze and understand environmental impacts and indicators. Nick also teaches GIS and is the instructor for Coursera‘s 5 course specialization in GIS and is an administrator of The Spatial Community, an open Slack community for spatial professionals of all types to solve problems, share knowledge, and socialize. In the recent past, he worked at the Center for Watershed Sciences at the University of California, Davis and supported the University of Oregon’s McMurdo Oceanographic Observatory in Antarctica. He was the founder and Executive Director of Environmental Consumer, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that develops actionable information and resources for consumers looking to take the next step to reduce their impact. He has held fellowships for research with the John Muir Institute, science communication with COMPASS, and climate change action with Roosevelt Institute: Pipeline. In the past he has worked with the UC Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (SAREP), as a Policy Fellow at climate campaign 1Sky (now merged with 350.org), and as an member of the Regional Climate Change Program at the Sierra Nevada Alliance.