Yu Chen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical and Environmental Sciences at the University of Toronto Scarborough. His research focuses on ecotechnologies, climate adaptation, community resilience, and the co-production of knowledge, particularly in relation to water governance, rainwater harvesting, housing, and disaster risk management. He adopts a transdisciplinary and collaborative approach, working at the intersection of social science and engineering, and integrates experiential learning into both his teaching and research. Prior to joining UTSC, Yu was a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Toronto’s Centre for Global Engineering, where he contributed to bridging engineering and social science perspectives through the Sustainable Peri-Urbanization Research Initiative and supported the development of international research partnerships across Latin America and the Caribbean. He holds a PhD in Sociology and an MA in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas at Austin, and has conducted ethnographic research in Mexico, China, and Cuba on urban development, housing, and community-based infrastructure.

Research areas: Rainwater harvesting; water and sanitation; just transition; sustainability and resilience; community-based research; interdisciplinary collaboration.