Biography
Dr. Charles Yoe is Professor of Economics at Notre Dame of Maryland University, where he coordinates the Graduate Program in Risk Management and its fully online MS in Risk Management Science. His teaching, research, and professional practice focus on decision making under uncertainty and the practical application of risk assessment, risk management, and risk communication.
For more than four decades, Dr. Yoe has applied risk analysis to complex public-sector decisions in the United States and internationally. He has worked with more than 20 offices and agencies of the U.S. government, as well as foreign governments, international organizations, universities, and private-sector clients. His work has addressed food safety and biosecurity, national security, natural hazards, water resources, ecosystem restoration, environmental and ecological risks, infrastructure, engineering systems, and enterprise risk management.
Dr. Yoe has conducted and reviewed dozens of risk assessments and has advised organizations including USDA, FDA, the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, FEMA, National Nuclear Security Administration, and National Security Agency. Internationally, he has trained professionals from more than 60 countries and has contributed to global risk analysis initiatives, including expert consultations for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Health Organization.
A major focus of his career has been translating the theory of risk and uncertainty into practical methods that people can use to make better decisions. Since the 1980s, he has developed and taught courses in risk analysis, risk assessment, risk management, risk communication, and decision making under uncertainty for government agencies, universities, international organizations, and professional audiences.
Dr. Yoe is the author of numerous books, articles, technical reports, and professional guidance documents on risk analysis, economics, and planning. His work consistently emphasizes a central idea, i.e., uncertainty should not simply be described, it should be understood and used to improve decisions.
Areas of Expertise: Risk analysis; decision making under uncertainty; risk assessment; risk management; risk communication; water resources planning; food safety and biosecurity; quantitative risk analysis.
Education
- Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Maryland
- MS in Water Resources Policy, Colorado State University
- MS in Policy Science, University of Maryland Baltimore County
- BS in Economics, University of Maryland
Research
Publications
- Principles of Risk Analysis Decision Making Under Uncertainty, Third Edition. 2026.Boca Raton: Taylor and Francis.
- The Art Of Making Decisions Under Uncertainty. 2026. Boca Raton: Taylor and Francis.
- Primer on Risk Analysis: Decision Making Under Uncertainty, Second Edition, 2019. Boca Raton: Taylor and Francis.
- Handbook on Phytosanitary Risk Management: Theory and Practice, with Robert Griffin and Stephanie Bloem, 2020, CAB International, Oxfordshire, UK.
- Natural Resources Planning, 2013.Boca Raton: Taylor and Francis.
- “Planning for Public Benefits,” a draft report to the Institute for Water Resources, 2024.
- "A New Direction for Phytosanitary Risk Management", Crop Protection, September, 2021. A new direction for phytosanitary risk management - ScienceDirect “Optimizing risk management strategies for the control of Philornis downsi -a threat to birds in the Galápagos Islands”, Frontiers in Conservation Science, section Animal Conservation, with others, September, 2021.
- Turning Point for Phytosanitary Risk Management? CABI Blog, November 19, 2020. https://blog.cabi.org/2020/11/19/turning-point-for-phytosanitary-risk-management/
- “Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis Model for Assessing the Risk from Multi-ingredient Dietary Supplements (MIDS)” with Hellen A. Oketch-Rabah, Mary L. Hardy, Allison Patton, Mei Chung, Nandakumara D. Sarma and others, 2020, Journal of Dietary Supplements, DOI: 0.1080/19390211.2020.1741485
- “The Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study—Brandon Road Draft Integrated Feasibility Study and Environmental Impact Statement—Will County, Illinois Appendix C Risk Assessment,” U.S.Army Corps of Engineers, http://glmris.anl.gov/documents/docs/brandon-rd/GLMRIS-BR_Appendix_C-Risk_Assessment.pdf Accessed december 14, 2017.
- “Principles of Risk Analysis for Water Resources,” Institute for Water Resources, 2017-R-01, 2017. “Planning Manual Part II: Risk-Informed Planning,” Institute for Water Resources, 2017-R-03, 2017.
- “Aquatic Nuisance Species in the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basin-A Risk Assessment in Support of the GLMRIS Study,” with M. Grippo, I. Hlohowskyj, L. Fox, Brooke Herman, and J. Hayse (2017). Environmental Management 59: 154-173.
- “Transforming Water Resources Planning Through SMART Planning,” Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management Volume 40 Issue 9, September 2014.
- “Risk Assessment: Principles, Methods, and Applications” invited chapter with L. Gorris In: Motarjemi Y. (ed.) Encyclopedia of Food Safety, Volume [1], pp. 65-72. Waltham, MA: Academic Press, 2014.
- “Risk Analysis” invited chapter in Achieving Sustainability: Visions, Principles, and Practices. Ed. Debra Rowe. Detroit: Macmillan, 2014.
Presentations
- Water Resources Planning with AI. 2026. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Planning Associates Program.
- Uncertainty. 2026. National Nuclear Security Administration, Risk Summit, Richland Washington.
- Thinking Probabilistically, 2026. National Nuclear Security Administration, Risk Summit, Richland Washington.
- Album Art--The Stories Behind Music’s Iconic Album Covers Podcast by Charlie and Adam Yoe
Awards
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration Leveraging/Collaboration Award
- FDA Director's Special Citation Award
- FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition Director's Special Citation Award
- U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary's Honors Award for Expanding International Trade Opportunities for Agricultural Producers and Other Rural Residents
- National Audubon Society Joan Hodges Queneau Palladium Medal for the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan