Michael D. Gerst is a research faculty at the Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center at the University of Maryland. His scientific work is motivated by helping stakeholders identify problems and solutions at the intersection of the environment, technology, and society. As a result of the complexity of these issues, his approach is rooted in systems, data, and decision science, which together allow for a holistic understanding of current knowledge so that stakeholders may assess trade-offs and risks of potential solutions. Dr. Gerst’s research portfolio has ranged from participatory development of global change indicators, cost-benefit analysis under uncertainty, life-cycle analysis, and scenario planning to designing and testing the efficacy of visualizations. His application areas have spanned climate change mitigation, food-energy-water nexus, critical materials, healthcare systems, and corporate sustainability.