Tierra Bills, assistant professor of public policy and civil and environmental engineering, has received the 2023 Zephyr Rising Star Award for her work modeling travel demand through an equity lens.

The award recognizes individuals early in their career who advance transportation and land use decision-making for the public good through improved travel analysis.

Bills is “passionate about outreach to underserved populations and transport impacts on disadvantaged communities,” the Zephyr Foundation said in a statement announcing the award. “In addition to brilliant, traditional academics (papers, NSF grants), she has testified to Congress and has written a popular press blog, and is even highlighted in a coloring book.”

Bills, an expert on the socioeconomic impacts of transportation decisions, is also affiliated with the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies.

The nonprofit Zephyr Foundation advocates for improved travel analysis and seeks to facilitate its implementation to promote equity, shared prosperity and sustainability. The organization said it selects Rising Star Award recipients who are collegial and collaborative; willing to invest time in volunteer roles including mentoring; respectful and thoughtful in interactions; and goal-oriented toward the public good, even if the pathway is unconventional.