Professor at University of Denver, United States
Professor Paul C. Sutton is a leading expert in sustainability science, population geography, and ecological economics. He is a Professor of Geography at the University of Denver, where he has served since 1999. His research focuses on topics such as urban metabolism, green infrastructure, land degradation, and the development of indicators for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Sutton is also involved in international environmental initiatives, having contributed to UNEP’s Global Environmental Outlook and served as a Visiting Fellow at The Australian National University.
Profile
Academic Background:
- Ph.D. in Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara (1999)
- M.A. in Applied Statistics, University of California, Santa Barbara (1997)
- M.A. in Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara (1995)
- B.S. in Chemistry, Union College, Schenectady, New York (1983)
Career Highlights:
- Professor of Geography at the University of Denver (2012-Present)
- Visiting Fellow at The Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University (2020-2021)
- Research Associate at NOAA’s National Geophysical Data Center (1995-2010)
- Lecturer at UC Santa Barbara’s Department of Geography (1992-1999)
- High School Teacher (1983-1993) and Process Engineer (1984-1992)
Research Focus:
- Population Geography
- Sustainability Science
- Ecological Economics
- Developing Indicators for the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)
- Ecosystem Services and Integrated Assessment
- Urban Metabolism and Smart Cities
- Green Infrastructure
- Land Degradation
- Applications of Nighttime Satellite Imagery
Engagement & Service:
- Founding Member, Center for a Regenerative Future (2024)
- Member, Board of Trustees, Morrison, CO (2018-2026)
- Contributor to UNEP’s Global Environmental Outlook (GEO-6 and GEO-7)
- Chair, Academic Program Review Team at Texas State University (2013)
- Proposal & Manuscript Reviewer for NSF, NASA, ESA, ARC, and other scientific foundations
- Keynote Speaker at various international forums
Honors and Awards:
- Best Graduate Advisor, College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (2024)
- Australian Water Award for Goyder Institute Collaboration (2022)
- Prose Award Winner for Environmental Sciences (UNEP GEO6) (2021)
- Best Researcher Award – IRULA (2019)
- NASA Earth System Science Fellowship (1997-1999)
Citations:
- Citations: 62,096 (All-time), 28,454 (Since 2019)
- h-index: 55 (All-time), 45 (Since 2019)
- i10-index: 102 (All-time), 92 (Since 2019)
Publication Top Notes
- The value of the world’s ecosystem services and natural capital
Costanza, R., d’Arge, R., De Groot, R., Farber, S., Grasso, M., Hannon, B., et al. (1997). Nature, 387(6630), 253.
- Changes in the global value of ecosystem services
Costanza, R., De Groot, R., Sutton, P., Van der Ploeg, S., Anderson, S. J., et al. (2014). Global Environmental Change, 26, 152-158.
- Twenty years of ecosystem services: how far have we come and how far do we still need to go?
Costanza, R., de Groot, R., Braat, L., Kubiszewski, I., Fioramonti, L., Sutton, P., et al. (2017). Ecosystem Services, 28, 1-16.
- The coasts of our world: Ecological, economic and social importance
Martínez, M. L., Intralawan, A., Vázquez, G., Pérez-Maqueo, O., Sutton, P., et al. (2007). Ecological Economics, 63(2-3), 254-272.
- The value of coastal wetlands for hurricane protection
Costanza, R., Pérez-Maqueo, O., Martínez, M. L., Sutton, P., Anderson, S. J., et al. (2008). Ambio, 241-248.
- Global estimates of market and non-market values derived from nighttime satellite imagery, land cover, and ecosystem service valuation
Sutton, P. C., Costanza, R. (2002). Ecological Economics, 41(3), 509-527.
- Is decoupling GDP growth from environmental impact possible?
Ward, J. D., Sutton, P. C., Werner, A. D., Costanza, R., Mohr, S. H., Simmons, C. T. (2016). PLOS ONE, 11(10), e0164733.
- Radiance calibration of DMSP-OLS low-light imaging data of human settlements
Elvidge, C. D., Baugh, K. E., Dietz, J. B., Bland, T., Sutton, P. C., Kroehl, H. W. (1999). Remote Sensing of Environment, 68(1), 77-88.
- Census from Heaven: An estimate of the global human population using night-time satellite imagery
Sutton, P., Roberts, D., Elvidge, C., Baugh, K. (2001). International Journal of Remote Sensing, 22(16), 3061-3076.
- A global poverty map derived from satellite data
Elvidge, C. D., Sutton, P. C., Ghosh, T., Tuttle, B. T., Baugh, K. E., Bhaduri, B., Bright, E. (2009). Computers & Geosciences, 35(8), 1652-1660.
- Global distribution and density of constructed impervious surfaces
Elvidge, C. D., Tuttle, B. T., Sutton, P. S., Baugh, K. E., Howard, A. T., Milesi, C., et al. (2007). Sensors, 7(9), 1962-1979.
- The value of ecosystem services: putting the issues in perspective
Costanza, R., d’Arge, R., De Groot, R., Farber, S., Grasso, M., Hannon, B., et al. (1998). Ecological Economics, 25(1), 67-72.
- Shedding light on the global distribution of economic activity
Ghosh, T., Powell, R. L., Elvidge, C. D., Baugh, K. E., Sutton, P. C., Anderson, S. (2010). The Open Geography Journal, 3(1), 147-160.
- Estimation of gross domestic product at sub-national scales using nighttime satellite imagery
Sutton, P. C., Elvidge, C. D., Ghosh, T. (2007). International Journal of Ecological Economics & Statistics, 8(S07), 5-21.
- A comparison of nighttime satellite imagery
Sutton, P., Roberts, D., Elvidge, C., Meij, H. (1997). Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 63(11), 1303-1313.
- A review of methods, data, and models to assess changes in the value of ecosystem services from land degradation and restoration
Turner, K. G., Anderson, S., Gonzales-Chang, M., Costanza, R., Courville, S., et al. (2016). Ecological Modelling, 319, 190-207.
- A scale-adjusted measure of “urban sprawl” using nighttime satellite imagery
Sutton, P. C. (2003). Remote Sensing of Environment, 86(3), 353-369.
- The Nightsat mission concept
Elvidge, C. D., Cinzano, P., Pettit, D. R., Arvesen, J., Sutton, P., Small, C., et al. (2007). International Journal of Remote Sensing, 28(12), 2645-2670.
- Modeling population density with night-time satellite imagery and GIS
Sutton, P. (1997). Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, 21(3-4), 227-244.
- The future value of ecosystem services: global scenarios and national implications
Kubiszewski, I., Costanza, R., Anderson, S., Sutton, P. (2017). Ecosystem Services, 26, 289-301.