GES faculty member quoted in "The Best of the Twin CIties"

Assistant Professor, Brenda Kayzar, was recently quoted in the in MplsStPaul Magazine.  The article entitled "What is North?"  appeared as part of the magazine's "Best of the Twin Cities, 2015".  Professor Kayzar's has also been quoted in 2 different Strib articles this fall regarding public art. 

UMN Geographer in the news!

Dr. Arun Saldanha is quoted in a recent LA Times article that discusses renaming Geographic sites.

Building a More "Workable World"

Geography Emeritus, Professor Joseph Schwartzberg, was instrumental in developing the Workable World Trust and Fellowship to support students and others who work to improve global governance through peaceful evolutionary processes.  The WWT's inaugural conference, Creating a Workable World, will take place Friday & Saturday, Oct. 9 & 10, at the Humphrey School. See the recent Global Spotlight article about this impressive accomplishment. Congratulations Joe!

Geography and MGIS Students to Participate in SUN Delegation

Nine GES students have been selected to be part of the University's SUN delegation! Seven Undergraduates, one MGIS student, Ethan Mooar, and Class of 2015 graduate Connor Schaefer (Geography BA, Urban Studies minor ), who is now pursuing a Masters in Urban Planning at Humphrey. Jacob Arndt, Erin Saatela, Coleman Shepard, and Clayton Watercott are currently Geography majors, Brady Steigauf is an Urban Studies major, and Kayla Chapman and Tyler Redden are pursuing their Bachelor's in Biology, Society, and Environment. The goal of the SUN delegation is to have the University of Minnesota invest in, or build, at least 1 megawatt (MW) of solar energy. Learn more about SUN.

Welcome to the newest GES PhD students!

GES student published in Journal of Hydrology

Kudos to Emma Bialecki, one of our new Geography PhD students. Her co-authored article "A multi-century tree-ring record of spring flooding on the Mississippi River” appears in the October 2015 issue of Journal of Hydrology.  Outstanding work in an excellent venue, the study combines analyses of tree-ring wood anatomy, flood hydrology, and synoptic climatology.  Congratulations Emma!

One Way to Fight California Drought: Study Trees!

GES faculty member, Dan Griffin's research is the subject of a short documentary from FiveThirtyEight and ESPN Films.  Congratulations Dan!

GES alumus in Minneapolis Tribune

Kenny Blumenfeld, GES PhD graduate and climatologist with the Minnesota DNR, appeared in an article in today's Minneapolis Star/Tribune today, Thursday, August 27, 2015.

Another article about GES PhD student in the field

Read the latest article about incoming PhD student Chelsea Cervantes De Blois' work with Soya farmers in Southern Kyrgyzstan. 

Geography Undergraduate's on-line piece

A story, debunking the suggestion of the upcoming 'mini ice age', submitted by Geography undergraduate, Andrew Urevig, appeared recently on Medium.com.  Before you decide to buy a new winter jacket, be sure to read Andrew’s reality check.

Incoming PhD student in the field

Chelsea Cervantes De Blois, who will be joining the GES department in Fall 2015, is currently in Osh Kyrgyzstan, working as an agricultural consultant with local farmers. The group is investigating how to grow soy in soil of the Karasuu and Aravan districts, while implementing different irrigation practices. Chelsea will work with the farmers, for three months, with the goal of developing  innovative approaches in regard to their agricultural production.

What does your front yard say about you? GES PhD in Minneapolis newspaper article

Ursula Lang stood in her yard in Minneapolis, on Thursday June 4, 2015. Lang studied the cultural geography of yards in Minnesota and urban environmentalism while receiving her PhD in geography at the University of Minnesota. "How people cared for their lawns varies a lot based on ideas about environmentalism and pressures from other neighbors" said Lang.  Read complete article

GES Grad Student Research: Theraputic Landscapes in Later Life

Jessica Finlay, GES Doctoral Candidate, recently published a paper in Health & Place based upon her RA work in Vancouver Canada the summer of 2013. It is entitled "Therapeutic Landscapes in Later Life: Impacts of Blue and Green Spaces for Older Adults". Currently she is interviewing seniors in the Minneapolis area as part of her doctoral research.
 

GES Professor Scott St. George and Undergraduate, Dan Crawford, convey climate change through music.

A string quartet from the University of Minnesota's School of Music performed "Planetary Bands, Warming World", Dan Crawford's latest musical arrangement. The piece conveys how climate in the Northern Hemisphere has changed over time. Read more and listen to the entire composition.

Exciting News! Changes in Graduate Curriculum

Prospective students entering as part of the Fall 2015 cohort will have the opportunity to apply directly to the PhD program without first attaining a Master's degree. More details here.

Fraser Hart in the news AGAIN

George Henderson Wins COGS Outstanding Faculty Award!

Congratulations to GES professor, George Henderson, winner of 2015 of the COGS Outstanding Faculty Award!

Professor Henderson teaches in the areas of geographic thought, urban geography, social-cultural geography, and Marx's political economy. He has contributed to the education of numerous geographers.

This award was established in 2010 as a way to recognize contributions of faculty members who go above and beyond in their work with graduate students. It is the only award where faculty members are nominated by and winners are selected by graduate students. The award has rightly been bestowed on Professor Henderson.

John Fraser Hart: "Just and old country geographer"

The U of M's oldest professor is teaching his last semester

Val Bjornson Scholarship awarded to BSE major!

Please extend your Congratulations to Alyssa Rockwelll, a Biology, Society, and Environment major and our very own BSE Peer Advisor! Alyssa is this year's recipient of the Val Björnson Scholarship. This scholarship will fund studies, research, and living expenses in Iceland for the 2015-2016 academic year.

Alyssa is interested in both environmental and health related issues and has taken advantage of BSE's flexibility to develop a strong biology background that will prepare her for a variety of career paths. She has taken several advanced courses with faculty at the School of Public Health and is working with Dr. Kirk Allison for her senior project, Societal and Cultural Factors Influencing Prevalence and Manifestation of Eating Disorders Internationally. Aly will complete her BSE major requirements prior to her departure.

Minnesota AAG Reception

The AAG Party/Reception is taking place this Wednesday, April 22 from 730-10pm at the Jazz Showcase, 806 South Plymouth Ct., Chicago. This year we have a band!!! This event is co-sponsored with U of Wisc and University of Illinois. See attached flyer. The Jazz Showcase does not serve food, but guests are welcome to purchase food from Bar Louie next door and bring it back to the venue without an issue.

Urban Studies Undergrads take 2nd place in Real Estate Development Challenge

A group of Urban Studies students won 2nd place in the 2015 University Real Estate Challenge. Each year undergraduate student teams from Midwest universities act as development consultants for the same development site. This year a 2 acre Bassett Creek site in Minneapolis' North Loop neighborhood was the chosen site.

Our students are Urban Studies, Architecture and Entrepreneur Studies majors. The U of M team made it through the initial judging to the top 3 and were able to present to the 100+ member audience. Their second place finish will bring $2500 to the University Foundation to be distributed to the Judith A. Martin fund, and $500 to the team itself.

See the names of the team members and the rest of the story.

John Fraser Hart Celebration THIS FRIDAY - venue change

Join the Department of Geography, Environment and Society as we celebrate the career of Professor John Fraser Hart on Friday, April 17, at 3:30 in Blegen 10.


Note the change of venue: Blegen 10

All About Arts Districts with Brenda Kayzar - a podcast

Streets.mn is dedicated to expanding the conversation about land use and transportation issues in the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota. Recently it's podcast was a conversation with Assistant Professor of Geography, Brenda Kayzar. Brenda researches urban real estate, housing, and the role of artists in urban economies. She was interviewed by UMN Geography graduate, Dr. Bill Lindeke, to talk about the history and future of "arts districts" in the US, particularly the northeast Minneapolis arts district, where Brenda serves on the board of an arts advocacy organization.

3 UMN Geographers in the news!

Read the article which appeared in the Minneapolis StarTribune, February 13, 2015.

Lorena Munoz receives prestigious fellowship

Assistant Professor, Lorena Munoz, has been awarded the Woodrow Wilson 2015 Career Enhancement Fellowship funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and administered by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation,

The goal of the Career Enhancement Fellowship Program is to increase the presence of minority junior faculty members and other faculty members committed to eradicating racial disparities in core fields in the arts and sciences.

Lorena will receive a one-year sabbatical stipend; a research, travel or publication grant; and participation in a two-and-one-half day annual conference/retreat.

Congratulations on a well deserved honor!

Congratulations to Lalit Batra and Jessica Finlay!

They both have been awarded Interdisciplinary Doctoral Fellowships(IDF) for the 2015-16 academic year.

The IDF provides a unique opportunity for outstanding doctoral students whose research is interdisciplinary and who would benefit from interaction with faculty at one of the University's interdisciplinary research centers or institutes. Jessica and Lalit were both endorsement by a host center - Jessica the center on Aging; Lalit the Interdisciplinary Center for the Study of Global Change - then they were nominated by GES to the University wide fellowship.

The fellowship provides a stipend of $23,000 for the academic year (September-May), tuition for up to 14 graduate credits each semester (fall & spring), and subsidized health insurance through the Graduate Assistant Health Plan.

Congratulations Jessica! Congratulation Lalit!

Congratulations to the 2015-17 McKnight Land-Grant Professor

Kate Derickson, Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography, Environment and Society, has been awarded the Junior McKnight Land-Grant Professorship. This
two-year award is designed to advance the careers of exceptional junior faculty.

Kate is an urban political economist working with the intersections of feminist epistemology, racialization and political economy. Particularly she is interested in understanding how academic scholarship can resource historically marginalized communities.

Congratulations Kate!

A map for the day!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/01/12/map-literally-every-goat-in-the-united-states/

Professor Nikhil Anand honored

Nikhil Anand was awarded the Junior Scholar Award by the Anthropology and Environment Society of the American Anthropological Association for his forthcoming paper "Leaky States: Water Audits, Ignorance and the Politics of Infrastructure in Mumbai" which is to be published in the highly regarded journal Public Culture.

The award is presented to early-career scholars, for the purpose of encouraging talented junior scholars to continue working in the domain of anthropology and environment by recognizing their exemplary scholarship.

Congratulations Nikhil!

Sarah Elwood confirmed as Brown Day speaker 2015

Sarah Elwood, Professor of Geography at the University of Washington, will be the speaker at Brown Day, May 1, 2015.

Professor Elwood received her PhD from the Geography Department at UMN in 2000. She currently is the co-director of the Relational Poverty Network and is conducting comparative research on middle class poverty politics in mixed income residential neighborhoods in Buenos Aires and Seattle.

More information about the Annual Brown Day events are forthcoming.

Congratulations to Sara Nelson on her award of the Thomas H. Shevlin

Sara Nelson has been awarded the Thomas H. Shevlin Fellowship for the 2015-16 academic year. This award will fund her research project: The Nature of Value: Building the Ecosystem Service Industry. The fact that Sara received the award in this university-wide competition speaks volumes about her work.

Local News story: U of M Helps Map Ebola Treatment

This story, featuring Geography's PhD student, Brittany Krzyzanowski, as the primary RA in working with the School of Nursing for U-Spatial, recently aired on KSTP's news report.