Rate My Professor Katherine Lieberknecht

Katherine Lieberknecht is an associate professor in the Community and Regional Planning program at the School of Architecture, University of Texas at Austin, where she also serves as Graduate Advisor for Community and Regional Planning. She holds a B.S. in Biology from the College of William and Mary, a Master of Environmental Management from Yale University, and a Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning from Cornell University. Prior to her academic career, she worked in regional land conservation.

Her research centers on environmental planning with an emphasis on equity, including climate planning, urban greening, water planning, and metropolitan-scaled green infrastructure planning. Dr. Lieberknecht pursues community-engaged research and leads transdisciplinary projects such as the NSF-funded Smart and Connected Communities initiative for community-led climate adaptation in Dove Springs, Austin; the DOE-funded Southeast Texas Urban Integrated Field Laboratory; NOAA-funded collaborations; and a green jobs study for the City of Austin. She served as the inaugural chair and current co-chair of Planet Texas 2050, UT Austin's grand challenge research program, and is faculty lead for the Texas Metro Observatory as well as co-lead for the Equitable and Regenerative Cities in a Post-Carbon Future flagship project. She teaches courses on climate relocation and migration, water planning, urban greening, and sustainable land use planning.

Lieberknecht has been honored with the UT Austin School of Architecture Outstanding Service Award (2018-2019), Outstanding Teacher (Lecture) Award (2020-2021), and UT Austin Humanities Institute Fellowship (2020-2022). Her key publications include "Closing the climate gap: insights from local knowledge for climate adaptation planning" (2024, Journal of the American Planning Association), "Leading with Local Knowledge: Climate Adaptation, Local Knowledge, and Participation in Austin, Texas’ Network of Plans and the Co-Designed Climate Navigators’ Tool and Process" (2023, Journal of Planning Education and Research), "Planning for Equitable Climate Retreat: Gaps in Knowledge and a Proposal for Future Directions" (2023, Journal of Planning Literature), and "Community-centered climate planning: Using Local Knowledge and Communication Frames to Catalyze Climate Planning in Texas" (2021, Journal of the American Planning Association). Her work fosters equitable climate resilience and interdisciplinary collaboration in urban planning.