Babs Buttenfield

In 2008 and 2009, a severe drought swept through much of Kenya and Tanzania. Nomadic herders, or pastoralists, such as the Maasai people in Tanzania, pushed south in search of greener expanses, bringing tens of thousands of cattle with them. What happened next was largely unprecedented: Locals from a region...

Michael Mendez Assistant Professor School of Social Ecology Department of Urban Planning and Public Policy University of California, Irvine In Person: GUGG 205 Apr 29, 2022, 3:30 PM Or Join Zoom Meeting: cuboulder.zoom.us/j/92325547973 Zoom login required (free account available at zoom.us ) Abstract As climate change advances, communities across the...

The Graduate School is pleased to recognize 18 dedicated faculty members who received this year’s outstanding faculty mentor awards. The nomination materials showcased their many contributions in mentoring graduate students and supporting the mission of graduate education. We appreciate their service and offer our heartfelt congratulations.

Xiaoling Chen, PhD Candidate, Geography Department, University of Colorado Boulder “For the People’s Health”: Transforming Hospital Spaces, Recasting Medical Expertise Ling is a coastal, hilly county in Southern China with a humid and semi-tropical climate. Although having a population of over one million, it is at times considered rural, with...

The spring semester began with in-person classes and masks on. This eventually transitioned to masks optional, and we ended the semester with our first in-person graduation since 2019. The Geography Department’s graduation celebration included students from previous years along with the 2022 graduating class. It was wonderful to see students...

I taught at the University of Toledo, then Texas State University, retiring in 2010 as an Associate Professor with numerous peer-reviewed articles and a co-edited book, "Geospatial Techniques in Urban Hazard and Disaster Analysis" under my belt. My retirement coincided with the start of a new, five-year journey, during which...

Chevalier Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Transportation and Development in China Institute for Asian Research, School of Public Policy and Global Affairs University of British Columbia After moving from the California coast to the Rocky Mountains to the karsts of northern Laos, I’m thrilled to return to the Pacific and be...

This past February, I received the Outstanding Student Presentation Award (OSPA) from the American Geophysical Union (AGU) for his presentation at the AGU Fall Meeting 2021. According to the AGU, "this honor is awarded for only the most exceptional presentations during AGU Fall Meeting 2021." I am a PhD student...

I graduated from CU with a PhD in Geography in December 2019. My dissertation research combined approaches from natural hazards, climate adaptation, political ecology, and science and technology studies (STS) to understand why emerging environmental and climatic hazards remain invisible and unmanaged. Specifically, I explored how and why western dust...

Xi Wang (Ph.D. 2021), Assistant Professor, Institute for Energy Studies and Department of Urban and Environmental Planning, Western Washington University I completed my Ph.D. in Geography at the University of Colorado (CU) Boulder in May of 2021, while the world was still quite unsure what was happening with the COVID-19...