Yadian Wang

Bio

Yadian Wang is a PhD Candidate in Landscape Architecture at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and an exchange research scholar at Stanford University’s Doerr School of Sustainability. She holds a BLA, MLA, and MPhil in Earth Sciences, and served as an HKU PhD Ambassador (2024–2025). Her research sits at the intersection of landscape architecture, environmental design, Earth and geosciences, and sustainability science, focusing on how global environmental change reshapes human–environment interactions, landscapes, communities, and governance.

Yadian’s research at Stanford Doerr School investigates how environmental change and coastal development reshape landscapes, communities, and commons governance. Her work combines longitudinal geospatial analysis with institutional and socioeconomic perspectives to trace coastal transformation in the Philippines, examining how changes in shorelines, ecosystems, settlements, and infrastructure intersect with property rights, resource access, and local governance. Through this approach, she seeks to understand why coastal communities experience different trajectories of environmental change and how these transformations affect the governance and sustainability of common-pool resources.

Honors & Awards

• National Undergraduate Innovation Award, Ministry of Education, P.R. China (2016)
• Distinguished Undergraduate Thesis Award, Beijing Forestry University (June 2017)
• 2nd Prize, The National College Bamboo Design Competition, the International Bamboo and Rattan Organization (INBAR) (2019)
• HKU PhD Ambassador, The University of Hong Kong (2024-2025)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations

• International Student Member, American Society of Landscape Architects (2025 - Present)
• Peer Reviewer, International Federation of Landscape Architects (2026 - 2026)
• Student Member, American Geophysical Union (2025 - 2025)