Alireza is currently Associate Professor and head of International Cooperation and Development and Community relations of the Faculty of Natural Resources and Environment. In 2019, he was chosen as TOP RESEARCHER of the Ferdowsi University of Mashhad.
He hold his BSc in “Natural Resource Engineering-Rangeland and Watershed Management” from the Sistan and Baluchestan University, Iran in 2000. He started three years of work in the Forests, Range and Watershed Management department of Sistan and Baluchestan province where he had many field experiences about combat desertification, wind erosion control and sand and dust storms mitigation. His MSc was in Watershed Management from the Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Gorgan in 2005. He started his research career in the Sistan Agricultural and natural resources research centre and worked there (from 2004-2009) as a researcher and head of Natural resources section. His main research topics were on sand and dust storms. He received a Prize in 2005 as the top national researcher from the Research Institute of Forests and rangelands of Iran. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Pretoria, South Africa with Prof. Hannes Rautenbach, Prof. Patrick Eriksson and Dr. Dimitris Kaskaoutis. His PhD covered the study theme of Geoinformatics, encompassing sand and dust storms, desertification and remote sensing in southeast Iran (Sistan) dustiest place in south-west Asia. After that, He followed a year’s post-doctoral studies at the University of Pretoria at the department of Geology. Then he returned to Iran, where he has been teaching and researching at the Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. Therefore, he has several years of University-level teaching, researching experience and field works, specifically on the following topics: (i) sand and dust storms (ii) wind erosion and its control, (iii), assessment of land potential, (iii) desertification and its control, (iv) Remote sensing and GIS in changes of Environments. In 2017-2019, He was developer and lecturer of an International MSc Educational Program in Environmental Management and Modelling (GeoNetC) funded by Erasmus+ (European Commission). He also possesses experience in using the relevant computer ware, particularly RS and GIS software, Goggle Earth Engine (GEE), R, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Images processing to assist academic activities within these fields. As a University Teacher, he has actively supervised 5 PhD and 27 MSc students.
His research areas are on sand/dust, aeolian sediments and RS & GIS in changes of environments. For someone who only completed his PhD in 2012, has an impressive international publication record, 53 reviewed publications in scientific journals. 2 book chapters in internationally published volumes, 53 peer-reviewed papers (41 Scopus documents), H factor = 21, Total citations ~1400. Many of his works have been published in relatively high impact international journals.