"Will Robots Take My Job? Understanding the impact of automation through an examination of long-haul truck driving," A Zube Lecture Presented by Henry Renski and Tosin Bamidele

About the Talk

Join UMass LARP for an insightful lecture exploring questions about AI and its effects on the workforce, particularly within the trucking and transportation industry.

About the Speakers

Henry Renski, PhD, is a professor of regional planning and the Chair of the Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning at UMass Amherst. Professor Renski joined the department in 2007. Professor Renski teaches courses in quantitative methods; Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and spatial analysis; and state and local economic development policy. His research focuses on understanding the technological and social forces driving regional economic competitiveness and transformation, and building upon this knowledge to improve the effectiveness of economic development policy. His current work examines regional influences on entrepreneurship; changing patterns of commercial development in the internet age; industrial cluster analysis and cluster-based development strategies; and the application of spatial-analytical techniques to local economic policy decision-making. Read more.

Tosin Bamidele is in the second year of the Regional Planning doctoral program at UMass Amherst, where she explores how development decisions shape public identity, urban form, and socioeconomic outcomes. Bamidele also affiliated with the NSF Future of Work project, examining how automation is transforming the heavy trucking industry. As the Zube Coordinator and Teaching Associate, Bamidele's role involves managing communications with guest speakers and faculty hosts, organizing planning-related lectures for AICP-CM credit approval, and supporting student engagement in the lecture series.