Shirley Shiqin Liu is a researcher for the Accessibility Observatory in the University of Minnesota’s Center for Transportation Studies. In her role, she plans and performs geospatial data analytics using Python, R, PostgreSQL, and QGIS to measure and evaluate multimodal transportation access to different types of destinations. She also supports business development activities at the Accessibility Observatory through grant writing, convening collaborators, and project management.
Shirley holds a PhD in public policy from Northeastern University and a master's degree in urban and regional planning from the University of Iowa. Her research has been focused on regional economic development, built environment, and urban data science. Her work has been published in peer-reviewed journals including Geographical Analysis, Lancet Global Health, Economic Development Quarterly, and Journal of Urban Affairs.