Through our scientific and technological genius, we've made of this world a neighborhood. And now through our moral and ethical commitment, we must make of it a brotherhood.
Background
Lola Fatoyinbo is a forest and coastal ecologist, remote sensing scientist and science communicator. She is a 2025 – 2026 MLK Visiting Scholar in the MIT Media Lab and previously worked as a research scientist at NASA for over 15 years. She studies flooded forests, including mangroves and peatlands from the ground and from space, with the aim of highlighting the importance of often overlooked and understudied ecosystems. Fatoyinbo has worked on characterizing the vulnerability and response of mangroves to disturbances from land use and climate change worldwide, developed new remote sensing instruments, as well as new applications of satellite data for carbon monitoring and biodiversity conservation. She was awarded the US Presidential Early Career Award in Sciences and Engineering as well as the 2024 Royal Geographical Society Esmond B Martin Prize for her efforts on merging scientific priorities with advanced technology to develop innovative applications for ecosystems science. Dr. Fatoyinbo’s work has been featured on international print and broadcast media, including the BBC, PBS, CBC and New York Times.