College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
Eric Tate

I study connections between natural hazards and society, primarily through modeling of social vulnerability and risk. I have particular interest in vulnerability to floods, and my scholarly work falls into three main areas:
- Assessing social equity in disaster mitigation and recovery spending
- Validating indicators of vulnerability and risk.
- Analyzing uncertainty and sensitivity of geospatial models
I currently serve on the Climate Action Commission for Iowa City, the advisory board for the Anthropocene Alliance, and the Resilient America Roundtable. At UIowa, I'm a faculty affiliate with IIHR – Hydroscience & Engineering, the Center for Global and Environmental Research, and the Public Policy Center.
Research minute: Eric Tate on natural disasters
Eric Tate is an Associate Professor of Geographical and Sustainability Sciences at the University of Iowa. Using models called social vulnerability indicators, he studies how natural hazards such as hurricanes and floods affect some populations more than others.
- Environmental Justice (GEOG 4770): relationships between environmental hazards & amenities, and marginalized groups & communities
- Hazards and Society (GEOG 3760): how societies plan for, experience, and respond to natural and technological hazards
- Water Resources (GEOG 2930): processes and practices underlying the management of freshwater resources
- Contemporary Environmental Issues (GEOG 1070): profiles the leading environmental challenges of today, focusing on causes, consequences, and solutions
Current students:
Graduates:
- Rebecca Kauten, PhD (2019): "Chloride and Corrosiveness: Trends, Indices, Scales of Measurement, and Agency Management Capacity to Address Freshwater Salinization."
- Md. Abu Sayeed Maroof, M.A. (2016): "Assessing the Influence of Parameters for Agricultural Loss Estimation due to Flood"
- Federico Antolini, M.A. (2015): "Geospatial modeling to assess location suitability in a detention system of small reservoirs"
- US Department of Housing & Urban Development. 2019-2022. PI for "Cost Effectiveness of CBDG-DR: Flood Mitigation and Vulnerable Populations." $850,000. With Co-PIs Aaron Strong, Carol Friedland, Melanie Gall, Chris Emrich, and Liz Hollingworth.
- US National Science Foundation. 2016-2021. Co-PI for "NRT-INFEWS: Paths to sustainable food-energy-water systems in resource-limited communities." $2,999,869. With David Cwiertny (PI), and Co-PIs Michelle Scherer, Craig Just, and Gabriele Villarini.
- US Department of Housing & Urban Development. 2016-2021. Co-I for "Iowa Watershed Approach for Urban and Rural Resilience." $6,471,876. With Larry Weber (PI), and Co-Is Craig Just, Julie Kearney, Valerie Decker, Ibrahim Demir, Keith Schilling, Allen Bradley, Christopher Jones, and Witold Krajewski.
* Denotes a UI geography student
Tate, E. and C. Emrich (2021). "Assessing Social Equity in Disasters." Eos, 102.
Tate, E., A. Rahman*, C. Emrich, and C. Sampson (2021). "Flood exposure and social vulnerability in the United States." Natural Hazards, 106(1): 435-457 .
Drakes, O.*, E. Tate, J. Rainey, and S. Brody (2021). "Social vulnerability and short-term disaster assistance in the United States." International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 53: 102010
Antolini, F.*, E. Tate, B. Dalzell, N. Young, K. Johnson, and P. Hawthorne (2020). "Flood Risk Reduction from Agricultural Best Management Practices." Journal of the American Water Resources Association, 56(1): 161-179.
Emrich, C., E. Tate, S. Larson, and Y. Zhou (2020). "Measuring Social Equity in Flood Recovery Funding." Environmental Hazards, 19(3): 228-250.
E. Tate (2019). "Déjà Vu All Over Again: Trends in Flood Drivers Point to Continuing Vulnerability." Environment, 61(5): 50-56.
Rufat, S., E. Tate, C. Emrich, and F. Antolini* (2019). "How Valid are Social Vulnerability Models?" Annals of the American Association of Geographers, 109(4): 1131-1153.
Tate, E., Decker, V. and Just, C. (2018). "Evaluating Collaborative Readiness for Interdisciplinary Flood Research." Risk Analysis. DOI: 10.1111/risa.13249
Bitterman, P.*, E. Tate, K.J. Van Meter, and N. Basu (2016). "Water security and rainwater harvesting: A conceptual framework and candidate indicators." Applied Geography, 76: 75-84.
Muñoz, C.* and E. Tate (2016). "Unequal Recovery? Federal Resource Distribution after a Midwest Flood Disaster." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 13(5): 507.
Tate, E., A. Strong, T. Kraus, and H. Xiong* (2016). "Flood Recovery and Property Acquisition in Cedar Rapids, Iowa." Natural Hazards, 80(3): 2055-2079.
Rufat, S., Tate, E., C.G. Burton, and A.S. Maroof* (2015). "Social vulnerability to floods: Review of case studies and implications for measurement." International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 14(4): 470-486.