Ruth Yabes, a professor emerita of planning, taught a variety of planning courses during her time at Arizona State University, including several with an international focus on planning. Yabes' work and research often focused on regions including Southeast Asia, as part of which she served for two years as the director of the Southeast Asian Studies program. Her work has also focused on sustainable urban development, regional transportation, resource management, and landscape protection.

Yabes professional affiliations include the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (member), International Association of Public Participation (lifetime member), Planners Network (member), and the Arizona Planning Association (member).