Sotirios Kechagias

PhD Student

Educations

• ‎‎ University of Florida, Doctor of Philosophy - PhD, Soil, Water, and Ecosystem Sciences | Aug 2025

• ‎‎ BSc Applied Geology (AUTh), MSc Geoinformation Science (WUR)

• ‎‎ MBA, Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University

Sotirios (Sotiris) Kechagias has been a Ph.D. student at the Soil Science Artificial Intelligence Laboratory since August 2025. His research focuses on the application of Earth Observation in tandem with AI in Soil Science, particularly the use of hyperspectral imagery for soil properties mapping and the assessment of ecosystem services through AI techniques. He holds a B.Sc. in Applied Geology from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and an M.Sc. in Geo-Information Science from Wageningen University & Research. Before starting his Ph.D., he worked at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki as an Earth Observation and Geo-AI specialist on the implementation of Horizon 2020 projects during 2024–2025. Sotiris is passionate about interdisciplinary collaboration and the integration of AI-driven geospatial analysis to support sustainable soil management and environmental decision-making.

Awarded the Grinter Award for the 2025 – 2026 academic year