Geography

Access to the raw materials humans use for energy-fossil fuels, minerals, water, wind, and sunlight-is determined by physical geography as well as politics, economics, culture, and history. From global to local scales, access to and governance of energy resources has geopolitical, economic, and social implications. This course explores these complexities in order to strengthen students' ability to view energy issues through a social scientific lens, as well as to reflect upon what a just energy transition entails.

This course explores the setting in which more than half of the world's people live-the city. Throughout history, urban areas have been the centers of economic, political, and cultural life. Further, many of the world's critical issues-social polarization, economic restructuring, environmental degradation, traffic congestion, and poverty-are concentrated in urban areas. In short, cities are complex and vibrant phenomena shaped by conflicting economic and cultural processes. This course examines the forces that give rise to cities and shape their internal spatial patterns.

In this course we learn how to collect and manipulate geographic data, create maps, and analyze spatial patterns and relationships. Students learn the underlying theories and concepts of geographic information science. Lectures and labs introduce both vector and raster geographic data models and a variety of tools for spatial analysis and data visualization. Students will incorporate satellite imagery, aerial photography, terrain, land-use, and census data into a geographic information system (GIS) to solve problems encountered in environmental management, city planning, and business.

What is climate justice, and how does it fit into recent political trends? This course will help students understand climate justice, a social and racial justice movement with specific manifestations in particular locations. Students will be exposed to environmental and climate justice ?place studies? and learn about the people involved, including Indigenous communities, African Americans, and other minority groups. The course also explores key "discontents" of climate justice: climate denialism and xenophobic, authoritarian responses. By the end of the course, we will have a better grasp of what?s at stake in climate struggles and our own role in these issues.