Dr. Ivan Pupulidy created the U.S. Forest Service Human Performance, Innovation and Organizational Learning team to focus on understanding risk in complex adaptive systems and foster a culture of learning in the agency. Ivan developed the Learning Review, a process that replaced serious accident investigation in the Forest Service and offered a new way to view accidents and normal work. His ability to integrate academic research with real-world application stems from his varied life pursuits, which have included work as a mine geologist, exploration geophysicist, and U.S. Coast Guard pilot on rescue and law enforcement missions. Ivan was an accomplished Forest Service aviation firefighter and served in the U.S. Air Guard and Air Force Reserves as a C-130 pilot, Safety Officer, and Modular Airborne Firefighting System pilot on wildland fires.

Ivan is the coauthor of the book Human & Organization Potential and is a Professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he leads the HOP pathway for the Advanced Safety and Engineering Management master’s degree program. His courses, like his career, focus on safety in complex systems and high-risk environments, such as wildland firefighting, aviation, military, and medicine. Ivan earned a Master of Science degree in Human Factors and Systems Safety at Lund University, Sweden, under Professor Sidney Dekker, and completed his PhD in Organizational Transformation at Tilburg University, Netherlands.