Faculty

Ph.D., Public Affairs-Environmental Policy. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. 2013-2018

M.S., Ecology. Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences. 2008-2011

B.S., Environmental Science. Wuhan University of Technology. 2004-2008

2024- present. Associate Professor, China-UK Low Carbon College, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. 

2021- 2023. Assistant Professor, China-UK Low Carbon College, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. 

2019-2021. Post-doctoral Research Associate & Associate Research Scholar, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton University. 

2018-2019. Post-doctoral Research Associate, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. 

• Urban carbon accounting from the multi-infrastructure perspective
• Urban energy system's net-zero carbon transition analysis
• Socio-environmental impact assessment of urban zero-carbon actions

1. National Natural Science Foundation of China. Mechanism and Carbon Mitigation Effect of Urban Cross-sectoral Energy Exchange. 2024.01-2026.12. Principal Investigator

2. Shanghai Jiao Tong University-University of Edinburgh Seed Fund. Urban Energy Policy and Management for the Net-zero Carbon Transition. 2023.07-2024.06. Principal Investigator

3. Soft Science Project of Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Action Plan. Global Cities' Carbon Analytic Tools in their Carbon-neutral Plans. 2023.03-2024.02. Principal Investigator

4. Shanghai Municipal People's Government's Key Consulting Research Project. Shanghai Low Carbon Institution Design and its International Connection Research. 2023.05-2023.09. Principal Investigator

1. International Resource Panel (UNEP's global science-policy platform). 
   Decarbonizing Global Cities with Environment, Health and Biodiversity Co-Benefits: A Land-Use Linked Multi-Sector Provisioning Systems Approach. 2024-2026. $350,000. Lead of the Chinese team

2. NSF. PIRE: Developing Low-Carbon Cities in the US, China, and India Through Integration Across Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Social Sciences, and Public Health. USD 4.45 million. 2012-2018. Main researcher

3. NSF. SRN: Integrated Urban Infrastructure Solutions for Environmentally Sustainable, Healthy and Livable Cities. USD12 million. 2015-2022. Main researcher

4. NSF. S&CC: Connecting the Smart-City Paradigm with a Sustainable Urban Infrastructure Systems Framework to Advance Equity in Communities. USD 2.5 million. 2017-2021. Researcher

Journal Articles

1. Tong, K.*. Urbanization moderates the linkages between energy resource and human well-being: insights from subnational analyses in China. Journal of Cleaner Production. 476. 143776. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.143776.

2. Sun, S., Tong, K.*. Rural-urban inequality in energy use sufficiency and efficiency during a rapid urbanization period. Applied Energy. 2024. 364, 123133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2024.123133

3. Tong, K.*, Sun, S. Multi-dimensional decoupling analysis in the context of energy use: dynamic well-being, resource, and impact decoupling relationships in China. Applied Energy. 2024. 359. 122726. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2024.122726

4. Joe F. Bozeman III*, Shauhrat S. CHOPRA, Philip James, SAJJAD Muhammad, Hua Cai, Kangkang Tong, Maya Carrasquillo, Harold Rickenbacker, Destenie Nock, Weslynne Ashton, Oliver Heidrich, Sybil Derrible, and Melissa Bilec. Three research priorities for just and sustainable urban systems: now is the time to refocus. Journal of Industrial Ecology. 2023. 27(2):377-639 https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13360

5. Nagpure, A. S.; Tong, K.; Ramaswami, A*. Socially-differentiated urban metabolism methodology informs equity in coupled carbon-air pollution mitigation strategies: Insights from three Indian cities. Environmental Research Letters. 2022. 17: 094025. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ac881e

6. Zhang, C.; Zhai, H.*; Cao, L.; Li, X.; Cheng, F.; Peng, L.; Tong, K.; Meng, J.*; Yang, Y.; Wang, X.*. Understanding the complexity of existing fossil fuel power plant decarbonization. iScience. 2022. 25, 8, 104758. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2022.104758

7. Tong, K.* Net-zero-carbon urban transitions need systems thinking. (Voices: "Opportunities and barriers to net-zero cities"). One Earth. 2022. 5(7), 739-744. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2022.06.013

8. Lal, M. R.*, Tibrewal, K., Venkataraman, C., Tong, K., Fang A., Ma, Q., Wang, S., Kaiser, J., Ramaswami, A., Russell, A. G.. Impact of Circular, Waste-Heat Reuse Pathways on PM_2.5-Air Quality, CO₂ Emissions, and Human Health in India: Comparison with Material Exchange Potential. Environmental Science & Technology. 2022. 56 (13), 9773-9783. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c05897

9. Clark, P. L., Tabory, S., Tong, K., Servadio, J. L., Kappler, K., Xu, K., Lawal, A. S., Wiringa, P., Kne, L., Feiock, R., Marshall, J. D., Russell, A. G., Ramaswami. A.*.  A data framework for assessing social inequality and equity in multi‐sector social, ecological, infrastructural urban systems: Focus on fine‐spatial scales. Journal of Industrial Ecology. 2022. 26 (1), 145-163. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13222

10. Tong, K., Ramaswami, A.*, Xu, K., Feiock, R., Schmitz, P., Ohlsen M. Measuring social equity in urban energy use and interventions using fine-scale data. PNAS. 2021. 118 (24) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2023554118

11. Ramaswami. A.*, Tong, K., Canadell J., Jackson. R., Stokes, E. Dhakal S., Finch. M., Jittrapirom P., Singh. N., Yamagata Y., Yewdall E., Yona L., Seto, K.. Carbon analytics for net-zero emissions sustainable cities. Nature Sustainability. 2021. 4 (6), 460-463. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00715-5

12. Tong, K., Nagpure, A., Ramaswami A.*. All urban areas’ energy use data across 640 districts in India for the year 2011. Scientific Data. 2021. 8(104). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-021-00853-7

13. Tong, K.*, Ramaswami. A., Feiock, R. Environmentally Sustainable Transitions of US District Energy Systems: Perspectives from Infrastructure Operators/Designers through the Co-evolutionary Lens. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2020. 268: 121894. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.121894

14. Tong, K.*, Zhao, Z., Feiock, R., Ramaswami, A.. Patterns of Urban Infrastructure Capital Investment in Chinese Cities and Explanation through a Political Market Lens. Journal of Urban Affairs. 2019. 41 (2), 248-263. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/07352166.2018.1499417

15. Tong, K.*, Fang, A., Li, Y., Shi, L., Wang, Y., Wang, S., Ramaswami, A*. The Collective Contribution of Chinese Cities to Territorial and Electricity-related CO₂ Emissions. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2018. 189: 910-921. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.04.037

16. Ramaswami. A.*, Jiang, D., Tong, K., Zhao, Z., Impact of the Economic Structure of Cities on Urban Scaling Factors: Implications for Urban Material and Energy Flows in China. Journal of Industrial Ecology. 2018. 22 (2), 392-405. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12563

17. Tong, K., Fang, A., Yu, H., Li, Y., Shi, L.*, Wang, S., Ramaswami, A.*. Estimating the Potential for Industrial Waste Heat Reutilization in Urban District Energy Systems: Method Development and Implementation in Two Chinese Provinces. Environmental Research Letters. 2017. 12(12): 125008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/aa8a17

18. Ramaswami. A.*, Tong, K., Fang, A., Lal, R., Nagpure, A., Li, Y., Yu, H., Jiang, D., Russell, A., Shi, L., Chertow, M., Wang, Y., Wang, S.. Urban Cross-sector Actions for Carbon Mitigation with Local Health Co-benefits in China. Nature Climate Change. 2017. 7: 736–742. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate3373

19. Tong, K., Fang, A., Boyer, D., Hu, Y., Cui, S., Shi, L., Kalmykova, Y., and Ramaswami, A.*. Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Key Infrastructure Sectors in Larger and Smaller Chinese Cities: Method Development and Benchmarking. Carbon Management, 2016, 7(1-2): 27-39. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17583004.2016.1165354 

Book Chapters

1. Tong, K., Ramaswami, A. Chapter 10: Urban Environments and Trans-boundary Linkages: in Poulter, B., Canadell, P., Hayes, D., Thompson, R. (Ed). Balancing Regional Greenhouse Gas Budgets. Elsevier. 2022. P337-374 

Report

1. World Economic Forum In collaboration with Connected Places Catapult and The Business of Cities. 2023. Data for the City of Tomorrow: Developing the Capabilities and Capacity to Guide Better Urban Futures (Insight Report). https://www.weforum.org/reports/data-for-the-city-of-tomorrow-developing-the-capabilities-and-capacity-to-guide-better-urban-futures 

2. World Economic Forum. 2022. Delivering Climate Resilient Cities Using a Systems Approach (Insight Report). https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_C4IR_GFC_on_Cities_Climate_Resilience_2022.pdf 

Advising Student  

A. Doctoral students

1. Yifan Wang (2024 Spring), Research focus: Urban energy system's zero-carbon pathways modeling

2. Luming Yang (2023 Fall), Research focus: City-wide infrastructure-based carbon accounting

B. Master's students

1. Yuanxin Chen (2023 Fall). Research focus: Urban carbon sink evaluation and actions to increase carbon sink: Focusing on cities in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai

2. Yining Gu (2022 Fall). Thesis (tentative title): The spatiotemporal analysis of the energy-carbon-water nexus in multiple urban infrastructure sectors: Focusing on cities in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai

3. Ke Sun (2022 Fall). Thesis (tentative title): Time-series analysis of the supply and demand characteristics of useful energy in cities: A case study of typical urban agglomerations

4. Shuyu Sun (2021 Fall), Thesis: Spatial and temporal patterns of rural-urban disparities in household energy consumption and carbon footprint in China

Courses

1. Fall 2023. Instructor. ENVR7102: Environmental Management (Graduate-level core course, in English). Shanghai Jiao Tong University
2. Fall 2023. Instructor. ENVR8165: Infrastructure for net-zero carbon cities (Graduate-level elective course, in English). Shanghai Jiao Tong University
3. Fall 2022. Instructor. ENVR8165: Infrastructure for net-zero carbon cities (Graduate-level elective course, in English). Shanghai Jiao Tong University
4. Fall 2020. Assistant in Instruction. Sustainable Cities in the US and India: Technology & Policy Pathways (Undergraduate-level). Princeton University
5. Fall 2016. Instructor. PA5752: Material and Energy Flows for a Sustainable Society (Graduate-level). University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

Committees and Service

• Co-chair of the Board. Sustainable Urban Systems Section in the International Society for Industrial Ecology. 2024- present
• Member of the Board. Sustainable Urban Systems Section in the International Society for Industrial Ecology. 2021-2023
• Fellow. Global Future Council-Cities of Tomorrow, World Economic Forum. 2020-2022

Journal Service

Editorial Board

• Young Editorial Board Member. Carbon Neutrality. 2022-2024

Guest Editor

• Journal of Industrial Ecology. Special Issue-2023 ISIE conference
• Carbon Neutrality. Special Issue 2022 Asia-Pacific Forum on Green and Low-Carbon Development.
• Resources, Conservation & Recycling. Special Issue "Reshaping urban infrastructure for a carbon-neutral and sustainable future" 2022

Outreach Editor

• Journal of Industrial Ecology

Referees of Academic Journals

Nature Energy; Nature Climate Change; Nature Communications; Nature Cities; Applied Energy; Environmental Science & Technology; Carbon Balance and Management; Journal of Cleaner Production; Ecological Economics; Journal of Industrial Ecology; Resources, Conservation & Recycling; Science of the Total Environment; etc.

Workshop and Conference Convening and Organization

• International Conference on sUstainable Energy-2024. 2024.10. Pattaya, Thailand. Scientific Committee

• 1st International Conference on Urban Science and Sustainability. 2023.12. Xiamen, China. Scientific and Organizing Committee

• 1st International Conference on Carbon Neutrality-2023. 2023.10. Shanghai, China. Organizing Committee

Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, University of Minnesota    2017-2018