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

My group is hiring Master's and doctoral students. We welcome talented and self-motivated individuals to join us!

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. 2024-2026. Principal Investigator

2. Shanghai Jiao Tong University-University of Edinburgh Seed Fund. Urban Energy Policy and Management for the Net-zero Carbon Transition. 2023-2024. Principal Investigator

3. Soft Science Project of Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Action Plan. Global Cities' Carbon Analytic Tools in their Carbon-neutral Plans. 2023-2024. Principal Investigator

4. Shanghai Municipal People's Government's Key Consulting Research Project. Shanghai Low Carbon Institution Design and its International Connection Research. 2023. 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. 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

Selected Journal Articles (Tong's advisees are underlined, *Corresponding author)

(Full publication list: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=5oUJgtkAAAAJ&hl=en)

1. Gu, Y.¹, He, Y.¹, Tong, K.^1,*, Sun, K., Chen, W.. Spatial and temporal patterns of urban energy-carbon nexus associated with multiple infrastructure provisioning sectors. Resources, Conservation & Recycling. 2025. 223, 108532

2. Sun, K.¹, Tong, K.^1,*, Xu, J., Shan, Y.. Developing a novel city-wide useful energy demand model based on detailed energy conversion processes. Energy. 2025. 323.135833.  

3. Tong, K.*. Urbanization moderates the linkages between energy resource and human well-being: insights from subnational analyses in China. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2024. 476. 143776. 

4. Wei, Y.¹, Chen, Y.¹, Yang, L., Ramaswami, A., Chen, W., Tong, K.*. Tracking a Chinese megacity’s community-wide carbon footprint and driving forces from a multi-infrastructure perspective. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2024. 460. 142420.  

5. Sun, S., Tong, K.*. Rural-urban inequality in energy use sufficiency and efficiency during a rapid urbanization period. Applied Energy. 2024. 364, 123133. 

6. 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. 

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. 

8. 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) 

9. 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. 

10. 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. 

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. Yuqi He (2024 Fall). Research focus: Urban net-zero carbon mobility

2. Yuanxin Chen (2023 Fall). Research focus: Urban carbon sink evaluation and actions to increase carbon sink: Focusing on Shanghai

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

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

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

Software Copyright Registrations

1. Shanghai Jiao Tong University. City Multi-Infrastructure Energy-Carbon Nexus Analysis Software. Registration NO. 2024SR1801370. 2024. First Developer: Gu Yining; Principal in Charge: Tong Kangkang.
2. Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Urban System Exergy Analysis Software. Registration NO. 2024SR2010324. 2024. First Developer: Sun Ke; Principal in Charge: Tong Kangkang.

Committees and Service

• IRP Member. 2025- present

• 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