Pyung Kim

(Name pronunciation: P-young Kim)

I am a Postdoctoral Scholar at the Center for Spatial Studies and Data Science, University of California, Santa Barbara. My research lies at the intersection of public policy, spatial analysis, and AI. My work has three primary threads:

  1. Spatial Policy Analysis: How do places shape people’s well-being, and what place-based policies can improve it?
  2. Causal Inference for Policy Evaluation: How can we credibly evaluate policy effects using quasi-experimental designs?
  3. AI-Informed Public Administration: How can AI identify who faces barriers to public services?

I combine quasi-experimental designs, GIS, and machine learning both to identify causal policy effects and to predict where needs are concentrated. This work draws on data that are difficult to access, including statewide administrative records that follow 10 million students over two decades and real-time air pollution exposure data from wearable monitors. Alongside this analytical work, I conduct fieldwork in under-resourced settings (including rural communities in Kenya) to engage directly with communities.

I have led and contributed to grant-funded projects supported by U.S. federal agencies, including the Social Security Administration (SSA; #JSIT24-04) and the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR, #90DPBU0006), as well as Korean government agencies, including the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), the National Institute of Environmental Research (NIER), and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

I am the recipient of the JSIT Research Competition Award from the Social Security Administration (2024), the Brian J.L. Berry Scholarship (2021–2025), the President’s Award for Outstanding Graduate (2018), and the National Excellence Scholarship of Korea (2015-2018).

Research Fields

  • Health, Social, and Disability Policy
  • Environmental and Climate Policy
  • AI-Informed Public Administration
  • Causal Inference / Policy Evaluation
  • Data Science / GIS / Geo AI

Contact Me

pyungkim@ucsb.edu
Google Scholar
Linkedin