Message from the Chair: Department of Geography & the Environment Setting New Standards of Excellence
I am very happy to report to all of our students, alumni, and friends that the Department of Geography &
the Environment has enjoyed a highly successful year. In autumn 2014, we set a record for the number of
undergraduate majors in our department. We now have 80 students majoring in Geography and 139
students majoring in Environmental Science, for a grand total of 219 undergraduate majors. In addition,
we have 111 students who are pursuing a minor in Sustainability, Geography, Environmental Science,
Geographical Information Science, or Geology. Altogether, student interest in geography, the
environment, and related fields is very strong. Part of the reason for the increased student interest
comes from the extremely high quality of instruction from our faculty, and the broad range of courses
and programs that we offer. Our field quarter program continues to be a major success, with courses this
year visiting the Grand Mesa region of western Colorado, the Mount Evans Field Station, western New
Mexico and eastern Arizona, the Czech Republic, and the Baja Peninsula in Mexico. Other field courses
visited Peru, Nicaragua, and the Florida Keys, as well as numerous classes that included field trips
throughout Denver and Colorado. Our blend of intensive classroom and laboratory studies together with
extensive field work provides our students with a very distinctive educational experience.
Andrew R. Goetz
In this Issue
Department faculty have continued to excel in both teaching and research. Dr. Rebecca Powell and Dr.
Eric Boschmann were both awarded tenure and promoted to the rank of associate professor this past
year in recognition of their outstanding teaching, research, and service contributions. Dr. Mike Daniels
received two major grant awards from the National Science Foundation and the Fulbright Scholar
Program in support of his research project in the Czech Republic. Dr. Matthew Taylor was awarded
external funding on two grant projects from the National Science Foundation and the National
Geographic Society for his work in Guatemala and Honduras. Matthew also had an article published in
the very prestigious journal Science. Under the direction of Dr. Paul Sutton, PhD student Amir Siraj was
the lead author on a paper also published in Science, a remarkable accomplishment for a graduate
student. Dr. Becky Powell continued work on a previously-awarded research grant from the National
Science Foundation (NSF). And most recently, Dr. Jing Li received the Outstanding Junior Faculty Award
from the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (NSM), and Dr. Hillary Hamann received a NSM
Olin Faculty Development grant to attend and participate in the Colorado Water Leaders Program.
Overall, department faculty members published 29 peer-reviewed journal articles, books, or book
chapters, and presented 35 papers or lectures to professional groups over the last year. Please take a
look inside this newsletter for more information about our teaching and research activities over the past
year.
Faculty and staff
3
Department Update
6
Graduates
22
We welcomed two new faculty lecturers this year—Dr. Helen Hazen and Dr. Kris Kuzera. Helen joins us
after teaching at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. Kris had a visiting position at DU for one year
in 2012-13 and last year had a visiting teaching appointment at the Air Force Academy. Both Helen and
Kris will be teaching the Our Dynamic Earth sequence, People Places Landscapes, and Sustainability &
Human Society this year, and Kris will be serving as our new internship director.
Happenings
23
Colloquium
24
Faculty News
10
Faculty Publications
14
Faculty Presentations 16
Faculty Research
18
Student News
20
Student
Presentations/Papers 21
News from Alumni and
Friends
25
Department supporters
27
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We are also saying good-bye to two faculty members—Dr. Paul Sutton and Dr. Russell Fielding. Paul is taking a leave of absence to
explore a faculty position at the University of South Australia in Adelaide where he will be starting in March 2015. Paul has been a
faculty member here since 1999, and has contributed greatly to the growth of our educational programs, especially the MS-GISc
program. He has also been a prolific researcher, having published over 60 peer-reviewed journal articles, books, and book chapters on
research areas including urbanization, spatial demography, geographic research methods, and carrying capacity using recent
developments in remote sensing (empirical measurements), geographic information science (analytical capability), and the inferential
potential of statistics (theory). His 1997 multi-authored article in Nature on valuing ecosystem services has been cited nearly 13,000
times. Russell has been a lecturer in the department since 2011, and left this year for a tenure-track position at the University of the
South in Sewanee, Tennessee. In addition to teaching introductory courses such as Our Dynamic Earth, Sustainability & Human
Society, and People Places Landscapes, Russell taught a large number of field courses to places including Denmark, the Faroe Islands,
the Florida Keys, Greenland, Iceland, and Norway. Russell also served as the department internship director, and was successful in
identifying over 150 internship opportunities for our students. We will miss both Paul and Russell, and we wish them the best of
success in their new positions.
th
The department invited University of Denver History Professor Susan Schulten for the 4 annual Laurance C. Herold Memorial lecture
on May 22, 2014. Dr. Schulten is a geographical historian, and author of two books, The Geographical Imagination in America, 18801950 and Mapping the Nation: History and Cartography in Nineteenth-Century America. Dr. Schulten's Herold lecture presentation
"After the Gold Rush: The Origins of the Colorado Territory and the University of Denver" was part of the University's sesquicentennial
celebration of its founding in 1864. Dr. Schulten painted a vivid picture of events that influenced the founding of the Colorado
Territory and the University of Denver, especially the key role played by territorial governor and DU founder John Evans. It was a
pleasure to host Dr. Schulten at our department, and witness her deep appreciation for the use of maps in research and teaching. We
also enjoyed visits from many other scholars throughout the world who presented their research at our colloquium series (see inside
newsletter for a complete list of speakers), thanks in part to the Marsico Visiting Scholars program.
I want to extend a special thanks to all of you who have taken the time to remember us with your thoughtful gifts to the Geography
and Environmental Science fund over the past year. Your donations make it possible for us to offer new and exciting programs to our
students, provide financial assistance to our graduate and undergraduate students to support their research expenses and to attend
conferences to present their research, maintain and replace much needed lab and field equipment, and allow us to support our
technological needs. At the request of the Herold family, we created the Laurance C. Herold Memorial fund in support of student field
research, and I am grateful to all of you who have supported this fund in Larry’s honor. Your contributions are always greatly
appreciated.
We regularly update our alumni database and enjoy learning about what is happening in your lives. Please take a minute to help us
keep
informed
of
your
activities
by
visiting
the
alumni
page
on
the
department
website
(http://www.du.edu/nsm/departments/geography/alumni-update-form.html). We are also interested in what you would like to see
included in the newsletter and welcome your input. As always, we extend an open invitation for you to visit the department should
you find yourself in the metro area. We annually hold a Kick-Off Fiesta in September and a Graduation Picnic in early June for faculty,
staff, students, families, alumni, and “friends of geography.” Please feel free to join us for future alumni events that we will be
hosting.
On behalf of the faculty, staff and students, please accept our best wishes for a happy holiday season and a peaceful, prosperous, and
productive 2015.
Andy Goetz
Chair
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Faculty and Staff
2014-2015
Faculty
E. ERIC BOSCHMANN, Ph.D.
Ohio State University, 2008.
Associate Professor. Urban geography,
economic geography, commuting,
mixed methods, GIS.
J. MICHAEL DANIELS, Ph.D.
University of Wisconsin-Madison,
2002. Associate Professor.
Geomorphology, environmental
change, soils, hydrology.
ANDREW R. GOETZ, Ph.D.
Ohio State University, 1987. Professor
and Chair. Transportation, urban
geography and planning, economic
geography.
HILLARY B. HAMANN, Ph.D.
University of Colorado Boulder, 2002.
Senior Lecturer. Hydrology, water
resources, watershed
biogeochemistry, physical geography,
conservation
HELEN HAZEN, Ph.D.
University of Minnesota- Twin Cities,
2006. Lecturer, Environmental
influences on human health,
environmental conservation,
international students
STEVEN R. HICK, M.A.
University of Missouri, 1983. Lecturer,
MS-GISc online Program Director, &
GTAC Director. Geographic information
science, project management,
cartography, criminology.
MICHAEL J. KEABLES, Ph.D.
University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1986.
Associate Professor and Interim Dean,
Daniel Felix Ritchie School of Engineering
and Computer Sciences. Climatology,
water resources, climate variability.
MICHAEL W. KERWIN, Ph.D.
University of Colorado, 2000. Associate
Professor and Director, Environmental
Science Program. Quaternary geology,
dendroclimatology.
KRISTOPHER KUZERA, Ph.D.
San Diego State, University of
California-Santa Barbara, 2011.
Lecturer and Internship Director.
GIScience, Remote Sensing, Statistical
Analysis
JING LI, Ph.D.
REBECCA L. POWELL, Ph.D.
DONALD G. SULLIVAN, Ph.D.
University of California at Berkeley, 1989.
Associate Professor and Director,
Environmental Sustainability LLC.
Quaternary studies, biogeography,
environmental change.
University of California-Santa Barbara,
2005. Associate Professor. Human-
environment interaction, natural
resource management, remote sensing,
statistics, land use/land cover, geographic
information science (GISc).
George Mason University, 2012.Assistant
Professor. 3D/4D Geovisualization and
Visual Analytics, Spatial Temporal Modeling
and Analysis, Web-based Geographic
Information Science (GISc), High
Performance Geocomputation, Spatial
Cloud Computing.
Page |4
Faculty continued
PAUL C. SUTTON, Ph.D.
University of California-Santa Barbara,
1999. Professor and MSGISc residential
Program Director. Geographic
information science, ecological
economics, human-environment
interaction, population geography.
ERIKA TRIGOSO, Ph.D.
University of Oxford, 2011. Lecturer.
Vulnerability and adaptation to
climate change, geographic
information science, Latin America.
MATTHEW J. TAYLOR, Ph.D.
Arizona State University, 2003.
Associate Professor and Director,
Graduate Programs in Geography. Latin
America, political ecology,
development.
Visit our faculty’s personal pages
(http://www.du.edu/nsm/departments/geography/index.html)
to find out more about their research interests, projects,
presentations, and publications
Emeritus Faculty
DAVID B. LONGBRAKE, Ph.D.
University of Iowa, 1972.
Urban Geography, Urban and
regional planning, quantitative
methods, GPS,
GIS.
TERRENCE J. TOY, Ph.D.
University of Denver, 1973. Erosion
processes, reclamation of disturbed
lands, process geomorphology.
Adjunct Faculty
JOSEPH K. BERRY, Ph.D.
Colorado State University, 1976. Keck
Scholar. GIS, natural resources,
computer cartography, spatial analysis.
DOUGLAS R. CLARK, Ph.D.
University of Denver, 1996.
Urban geography, GIS, natural resource
analysis.
MARIA CAFFREY, Ph.D.
University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2011
Paleoclimatology, Meteorology, Future
Anthropogenic Climate Change.
ANDREA GELFUSO GOETZ, J.D.
University of Denver, 1990.
Environmental law.
JEFFERY KREEGER , MBA (Marketing)
University of Colorado, Denver, 1988.
Certificate, GISc, University of Denver,
1995. Retail store demographics, real
estate dynamics
MICHELLE MORAN-TAYLOR, Ph.D.
Arizona State University, 2003. Director,
International LLC. Gender and
international migration.
SEAN TIERNEY, Ph.D.
MARTHA A. NAREY, Ph.D.
University of Denver, 1999. Dendroclimatology, drought, climate, paleoenvironments, rural land use, American
Indians.
University of Denver, 2010. New energy and the
energy transition, city/nature nexus, urban
resiliency in response to globalization,
transportation
Page |5
Staff
The Department of Geography
and the Environment
AMANDA O’CONNOR, B.A., Social Work,
Longwood University, 2006.
Assistant to the Chair.
University of Denver
Boettcher West, Room 120
WILLIAM K. KINISTON, Master Certification of
Advanced 3D Animation & Graphics,
School of Communication Arts, 1996.
Office Assistant.
2050 E. Iliff Avenue
Denver, CO 80208
Phone: 303-871-2513
SELAM HABTEAB, Work Study
Fax: 303-871-2201
E-mail: [email protected]
Hands-on learning in Bear Creek with GEOL 3540 Hydrology students
(photo courtesy Hillary Hamann)
Field Quarter students and Mike Daniels in the forest outside the town
of Most, Czech Republic (photo courtesy Larkin McCormack)
Field Quarter students at the Gila Cliff Dwellings
(photo courtesy Larkin McCormack)
Hillary Hamann joined faculty, staff and students within
NSM for this year’s Crimson Classic 5K in September
Page |6
DEPARTMENT UPDATES
New Additions and Departures
Russell Fielding accepted a tenure-line assistant professor position at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. He began his new
position this fall. We thank Russell for his three years of service in the department, including an excellent job in teaching and in directing our
internship program.
With goodbyes comes welcomes as we are excited to introduce two new lecturers to our faculty. Helen Hazen has joined the department
after teaching for seven years at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. Her areas of expertise include health and environment as well as
environmental conservation. Helen will be teaching several of our introductory undergraduate courses including Our Dynamic Earth, People,
Places, and Landscapes, and Sustainability & Human Society. Kris Kuzera rejoined the faculty after having taught in our department during
the 2012-2013 academic year. His areas of expertise include remote sensing, GIS, and statistical analysis. In addition to teaching some of the
introductory undergraduate courses, Kris is also serving as the internship director. We are happy to have both Helen and Kris join our
department.
Faculty Highlights
This summer, Eric Boschmann and Becky Powell were promoted to the rank of Associate Professor. We congratulate their many
accomplishments and thank them for their contributions to the department and university.
Mike Daniels is currently on a year-long sabbatical conducting research in the Czech Republic. Last February he received news that he was
awarded a US Fulbright Scholar Award in support of his research on the topic of “Soils, sediments, and the legacy of medieval agriculture in
Czech pluzina landscapes”. Read more about the work Mike is doing in the Czech Republic under our Faculty News section.
Jing Li was the winner of the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics 2013-2014 Outstanding Junior Faculty award announced at this
year’s Awards Ceremony and Reception. The award is based on outstanding performance in research, teaching, and service by a junior
faculty member.
Matthew Taylor co-authored an article published in Science in January titled
“Drug Policy as Conservation Policy: Narco-Deforestation”. The article focuses
on the violent and environmental consequences of drug-related deforestation
in Guatemala. Dr. Taylor and other researchers from the United States and
Germany propose re-strategizing the war on drugs. They stress that the
current focus on the supply side and interdiction policies force drug smugglers
into increasingly remote regions to smuggle their product- these remote
regions contain Central America’s last swaths of biodiverse forests. Thus, they
conclude that current drug policy is also a conservation policy. This team of
researchers is just at the beginning phases of delving deeply into the multiple
drivers of deforestation in this region and are looking for ways to involve more
undergraduate and graduate students in this research. You can read the
entire article at http://raisg.socioambiental.org/system/files/Science-2014McSweeney-489-90.pdf (Summary contribution by Nancy Sasaki)
(Photo courtesy of Matthew Taylor)
Welcome Chancellor Chopp and New University Initiatives
th
Rebecca Chopp began her position as the 18 chancellor of the University of Denver in September. She spent much of the fall conducting a
listening tour across campus, meeting with students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members to learn more about the university and
the vision for the future. The chancellor recently announced that one of her first initiatives is to begin implementing several of the
recommendations from committees and reports that were conducted last year. One strategy to begin this work is through four newly
developed task forces. The task forces include (1) Equity, Diversity, and Inclusive Excellence, (2) Student Access and Support, (3) Professional
Development for Faculty and Staff, and (4) Expanding Sustainability on Campus. Dr. Becky Powell has been appointed co-chair of the Task
Force for Expanding Sustainability on Campus. Learn more about our new Chancellor and university initiatives at http://www.du.edu/chancellor/
Meet our new Post-doctoral Fellow, Jennifer-Grace Ewa (contribution by Jennifer-Grace Ewa)
(photo courtesy Jennifer-Grace Ewa)
Jennifer-Grace Ewa is the new IRISE Post-doctoral Fellow in the Provision of Open Space. Her research
focuses on underrepresented communities and their relationship with space and the outdoors. She is
housed in both law and geography and will study the various spatial, temporal, cultural, socio-economical,
psychological, and legal barriers to space. Cities everywhere are attempting to be more inclusive with
regard to open space; park equity has become the main land use focus for cities from LA to New York City.
However, in order to truly be inclusive we must first understand underrepresented communities and their
relationship with space. She is working on papers, conference abstracts, and finalizing her IRB paperwork.
Jennifer-Grace will co-teach a law and land-use class next semester. She loves dogs, cooking, reading,
running, and nature-focused design.
Page |7
Ph.D. student, Amir Siraj, published in Science
In March, Ph.D. student, Amir Siraj, was lead author on an article published in Science, titled “Altitudinal Changes in Malaria Incidence in
Highlands of Ethiopia and Colombia.” You can find the article at http://www.sciencemag.org/content/343/6175/1154.full . Amir shared some
information with us on this great accomplishment.
On “Altitudinal Changes in Malaria Incidence in Highlands of Ethiopia and Colombia” (contribution by Amir Siraj)
Mounting scientific evidence has proved climate change to be “unequivocal”. Thus, most works related to climate change are focusing on its
potential impacts. One of these potential impacts deals with the effect on biological processes behind the spread of infectious diseases such
as malaria and dengue fever, major diseases with global significance.
In theory, warming climate is expected to affect areas at the fringe of malaria transmission by encroaching into those areas that used to be
‘too cold’ for the disease transmission. However, the empirical evidence to support this has been a source of heated global debate, fueled by
the effect of non-climatic factors such as control intervention and demographic shifts on the number of cases or disease incidence rate.
Our study circumvented this problem by considering a measure that was not affected by the year to year number of cases, by considering the
spatial spread of the disease and the change in that spread from year to year. We looked at the movement of the ‘center of gravity’ of the
disease along elevation gradient. The study proved this movement of the ‘disease’s center of gravity’ was related to inter-annual changes in
the mean temperature in the study area even after controlling for major interventions. During warm years the median elevation (and other
quantiles indeed) went up in altitude while in colder years the median altitude went down. This suggested warming climate would shift the
range of the disease to higher altitudes.
Our team includes senior researchers in the field of theoretical ecology and epidemiology, including Prof. Mercedes Pascual, a 2011 Marsico
visiting scholar with the Department of Geography and Environment, who is based at University of Michigan’s Ecology and Evolutionary
Biology; and Prof. Menno Bouma of London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. With confirmed-cases data from Ethiopia and
Columbia, unique in their temporal and spatial resolution provided by the respective Departments of Health, our team worked together
throughout the data analysis and preparing the manuscript to publish this important research.
Geography students use unmanned aerial vehicle to explore development in Nicaragua By Jack Etkin (originally appeared in
University of Denver magazine)
Associate geography Professor Matthew Taylor, who began taking students to Nicaragua in 2005 to study issues related to development,
made his latest trip there in December. Taylor and his students brought along a new teaching tool: an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), this
one a quadcopter whose four propellers are controlled remotely by a hand-held radio transmitter.
Before the 10-day class, Taylor and several graduate students tested the device for several weeks almost daily in the courtyard outside the
Boettcher Center, sometimes with unintended results.
“We did crash one,” Taylor says. “One of the propellers flew off.”
Taylor was able to obtain funding for a new UAV, which cost about $800 for both the UAV and the camera to mount on it. But after the
mishap on campus, Taylor and his students in his Nicaragua: Development Dilemmas class were leery of sending the UAV beyond 2,000 feet
above ground for fear it might spiral out of control and land in the ocean. The camera is waterproof but not the vehicle itself.
Nonetheless, the UAV enhanced the trip to Nicaragua’s Southern Pacific Coast, where Taylor and his students studied an area that has
undergone development as tourism has increased.
“They’re studying landscape and livelihood change related to the increase in tourism in the area from multiple perspectives,” Taylor says,
“from the perspectives of the locals, the investors and also not-for-profit organizations. What happens to the locals, basically, is the big
question.”
Many of those locals are fishermen, whose equipment consists of nets and small boats with old, limited outboard motors. The boats’ range is
only about six miles offshore, and since gasoline is a major expense, the consequences of a trip that doesn’t yield a good catch can be harsh.
The fishermen rely on what Taylor termed “accumulated knowledge” that is time-tested but not foolproof to determine the fishing
conditions on a given day. Depending on the species being sought, Taylor says, “the relationships between water clarity and fish abundance”
are crucial. And water clarity can be determined accurately by a UAV and camera.
“What we’re trying to do is make it easier for fishermen to earn a living,” Taylor says. “Water clarity is something fishermen can use as an
indicator of what type of fish are available, and our purpose, given the increase in tourism, is to provide fishermen with as much information
as possible so that they can make economic gains because of this new market. If they’re spending less on getting their fish, their profit
increases. I don’t think we got high enough with this instrument to give power to the fisherman and to be of benefit to them, so we would
just need a different instrument. But it works.”
That also was the conclusion when observing land cover, which, for example, would include spotting increases in the likes of trees, pastures
and condominiums.
“The land cover impacts infiltration rates of rainfall and also impacts evaporation rates of moisture in the soil,” Taylor says. “The bigger
question is how is land cover changing, and therefore, how does that impact recharge to the aquifer?”
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DEPARTMENT UPDATES, CONTINUED
The UAV used on the recent trip approached a height of 2,000 feet. The capabilities of the device when used for the first time in Nicaragua
were explored on the journey, which was about logistics as much as any particular research questions.
“The broad question was basically, ‘How can this technology benefit local lives?’ Taylor says, “with subsequent questions like, ‘Can we
determine water quality with the technology?’ or 'Can we help local fishermen in other ways?’ Those questions were categorically answered
in the affirmative. We can, and will, be able to assist.”
Student research project examines fishing practices in the Caribbean
By Sawyer D’Argonne (originally appeared in University of Denver magazine)
While most students were home enjoying their summer vacations and unwinding before the school year kicks into gear, University of Denver
senior Jill Hamilton was below the Caribbean Sea, hanging out with fish and seeking solutions to their declining numbers.
The environmental science and strategic communications major was one of 44 undergraduate students to receive a DU grant to spend the
summer engaged in research. Hamilton studied the interaction of marine industries and reef management in Nevis, a small island in the
Caribbean. She spent the summer doing research dives into the reef surrounding the island, conducting interviews with fishermen and
government officials and coming up with solutions to create more sustainable fishing habits on the island.
The main focus of Hamilton’s study was the negative effects of overfishing on the reefs and fish populations surrounding the island.
Fishermen, knowingly sidestepping government regulations, have begun fishing in reefs just off the coast of Nevis, where fish populations
have been all but decimated. As a result, the ocean is returning fewer—and considerably smaller—fish to the island, as well as destroying the
reef, an integral part of the island’s culture and economy.
“I would go down to the docks in the morning and talk to the fishermen as they got off their
boats. That was really interesting because they were very candid, real people who have been
using resources from the ocean since they were born,” Hamilton says. “Their parents had been
using the resources; they had fishermen going back in their family for generations. A lot of
people said that their parents, and previous generations, viewed the ocean as this endless
resource, and they recognize now that it’s not. The new generation is more educated and
realizes that there’s a problem.”
While regulations on fishing locations, size of fish and fishing practices are all in place, the real
problem is a government that lacks the resources to enforce the laws, Hamilton says. The issue
becomes even more complex as the economic and cultural significance of the reef begins to veil
the growing ecological issues in the region.
“A lot of fishermen have been fishing the same spot for years and years, taking the fish straight
to the shore, to their stand on the street, and selling them in the same spot for many years, and
to the same customers,” Hamilton says. “There are a lot of cultural aspects of changing people’s
ways that get really mixed into this problem as well.”
With an ineffective protection system in place and fishermen who are unable to afford vessels
to fish in deeper, more fertile waters, other steps must be taken. Hamilton supports introducing
a marine park that would investigate breeding habits and where the fish are living.
(photo courtesy of Jill Hamilton)
Staffers would determine the most crucial areas for the rejuvenation of fish populations, while
also providing alternative fishing locations, a tactic that has had success in other regions.
“If a management plan is created that will incorporate everyone’s needs to the best extent possible, and communicates these needs and
educates people on why this would work, then I think there’s a huge possibility of it working,” Hamilton says.
Hamilton’s enthusiasm for the project stems from her interest in resource management, as well as her love of scuba diving, which she
developed while learning to dive for a coral reef ecology class trip to Cozumel, Mexico, in her sophomore year. She plans to continue her
work in natural resource management after graduating in November, citing the Nevis project as a major motivator.
“I hope to go to grad school for natural resource management, possibly with a marine focus,” Hamilton says. “I would love to have the
experience of working on a marine research team. This was my first taste of research. The summer research grants and the [University’s
Partners in Scholarship research grants] really provide undergraduate students with the opportunity to have their first taste of independent
research.”
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DEPARTMENT UPDATES, CONTINUED
Field Quarter 2014
We asked students to reflect on their field quarter experience. Below is some of what they
shared:
Phoebe Coburn
Field Quarter is an exceptional experiential learning program. Each course and each professor is unique
and taught me their own unique and valuable lessons. During the first course with Don, I felt we weren’t
treated as students to be lectured at, but rather needed assistant researchers. On both of his trips, Don
gave us the opportunity to see what a career in research entails. No one more passionate or dedicated
than Don could have been picked to do the job.
Though Mike Kerwin pushed me to my academic limit, he didn’t need to because he inspired me to push
myself more. His infectious energy made all the students enthusiastic to be on our journey throughout
the Southwest. He made me believe I can succeed at any career I choose to pursue, and prepared me for
that as well. He is an absolutely invaluable professor who truly changed my life and I hope I will always
know him as a teacher and a friend.
Field Quarter, Grand Lake, CO
(photo courtesy Larkin McCormack)
No teacher has taught me how to question the world more than Mike Daniels. His unique teaching style
forces students to ask questions and attempt to develop an answer on our own before asking for or
looking up the answer. He taught me how to always strive for more knowledge and how to make the
world my own classroom without the crutch of an institution. Mike also became a close friend of mine
and all the other students – he cared about each of us as individuals and treated us as equals.
Lastly, each student on the trip became a teacher to me as well. My twelve classmates became my coworkers and my family. Camping and cooking together everyday taught the group successful
communication skills and compassion towards one another for the well being of the whole group.
Traveling in Europe with a dozen other people is no small feat, but we performed without fault. By
the time we arrived in Mexico, group conflicts, though rare, were handled in a mature and successful
manner with every group member involved in the solution.
Field Quarter, Catavina, Baja California
(photo courtesy Larkin McCormack)
Though I have undoubtedly loved my time in both the International Studies and Geography
departments at DU, no class has defined my time at DU as much as Field Quarter. Because of Field
Quarter, I am proud to be graduating from DU this spring and I now know that I couldn’t have picked
a better school.
Sumner Van Brunt
I had no idea what to expect from Field Quarter before it started, and it turned out to be an
incredible adventure that surpassed my expectations. It was an experience that combined the
adventure of study abroad without the loneliness that at times comes with it, with the comfort of
being with fellow DU friends and professors without the routine of being on campus. I had a
moment in Baja when we were driving somewhere and Don was speaking on the radio about the
surrounding environment and I realized I was experiencing the most exceptional way to learn. It
was like when a teacher puts on an educational movie to aid with learning, except instead of
watching it this time I was in the movie. If I had learned about an arroyo in a classroom and then a
few years later happened to be in one, I probably wouldn’t think to myself “oh, I’m in an arroyo.”
But learning what an arroyo is while I was in one, that will stick with me forever. Field Quarter was
the best academic experience I have ever had because I was living what I was learning.
Field Quarter at Vyhlídka na Kapelu (Lookout over the Band) in Česky
Ráj (Bohemian Paradise). Sandstone pillars in the background result
from feedback mechanisms within a suite of simultaneously-acting
weathering and erosion processes. Micro-climatic gradients create
variable ecological niches that provide habitat for a rich diversity of
flora and fauna. Česky Ráj was the first protected landscape area in
Czech Republic and is an excellent example of conservation for both
biodiversity and geodiversity. (photo courtesy Mike Daniels)
Chelsea Warren
An average female California sea lion is 6 feet. I know this because when one swam beneath me on an island outside of Espiritu Santo, I could not help but
notice that the large mammal beneath me was taller and a lot more graceful than myself. This was not the main attraction though, and my student peers up
ahead waved underwater to come hither. Though interacting mostly only with 13 other individuals for 11 weeks means picking up on everything from body
language cues to someone pulling out a new shirt 20 days into Baja, I knew the main reason why we were here: sea lion pups. Field Quarter is full of people
running toward the insects, reptiles, and arachnids that scare our peers. Baja was no exception. We run toward the crazy: scorpions hanging out near the
kitchen, camping on sandstone bluffs that are 300 feet above the crashing surf, and the occasional tarantulas found under the tent. Field quarter is based on
experiential learning, which to me means that I get to grant my inner inquisitive, nerdy self the pleasure of being a proper student. I get to use a walkie-talkie
and ask my professor to explain what is happening outside my window. I get to see a baby turtle touch the sea for the first time in Baja, see the earth ripped
opened by open pit mining North of Prague, and get to fall asleep under the Milky Way each night. Being on Field Quarter means getting to do what any
environmental science major wants to do, truly embrace the world as my classroom.
Interterm 2014
The department led three interterm trips this academic year. During both the summer and winter interterms, Matthew Taylor
took students to Nicaragua to understand the rapid changes taking place in the Pacific Coast region. Russell Fielding led a trip to
the Florida Keys during the summer interterm. The focus of the trip was on the biogeography of the region, environmental
protection, and the effects of tourism and development on natural island ecosystems.
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FACULTY NEWS
News from E. Eric Boschmann
This year I had research papers appear in both journals of the Association
of American Geographers: one in The Professional Geographer with
former graduate student Emily Cubbon (Sanschagrin), and one in the
Annals of the Association of American Geographers with a colleaguefriend at University of North Dakota, Michael Niedzielski.
Borderlands. If you get a chance, have a conversation with Professor Emeritus David
Longbrake and ask him about his passion for overland travel. He will speak about the joy of
witnessing the landscape slowly evolve and change. Because of this we opted to take a 19-hour
bus (luxury liner!) from Guatemala City, Guatemala to Managua, Nicaragua. One interesting
aspect was the many border crossings. This photo shows the Río Goascorán border between El
Salvador (left) and Honduras (right). While it looks so simple as a border, it reminded me of Alex
Diener’s work (a recent Marsico Visiting Scholar) and the assorted complexities behind national
boundaries. Check out his books A Very Short Introduction To Borders, or, Borderlines and
Borderlands: Political Oddities at the Edge of a Nation-State. [31 August, 2014. EEB]
Certainly the highlight of this year was a 5-month sabbatical trip across
Latin America with my wife, Jennifer. We traveled over 16,000 miles by
airplane, train, boat, motor coach, city bus, subway, kayak, bicycle, taxi,
tuk tuk, walking, and running. Our time was spent in Guatemala (7
weeks); passing through El Salvador and Honduras; Nicaragua (1 week);
Costa Rica (2 nights); Peru (10 days); Paraguay (1 month); Buenos Aires,
Argentina (6 weeks); and a long afternoon in Colonia, Uruguay.
An example from Eric’s analog blog (photo courtesy Eric Boschmann)
After studying Spanish for 6 weeks, we traveled through Central America
and into South America. In addition to future lectures, I thought about
how these travels might connect back to the students at DU immediately. One way I fostered this was through my “analog blog.” My office at
DU is across from the BW124 classroom, where students are often waiting in the hallway to enter their next class. What better way to
capture their geographic imaginations than by posting photos from my travels? Each week during Fall Quarter 2014 I sent back a photograph
from our travels, with some textual interpretation, and had it printed and pasted to my office door and surrounding walls. [Thanks Will and
Amanda for helping with this!]
One primary research project during sabbatical was to begin collecting information about Asunción, Paraguay. It is the only remaining capital
city or major city of South America not yet profiled in the “City Profiles” series of the Cities journal. In the coming months I will compile my
findings into an article for this series.
Finally, sabbatical was also a time of rejuvenation, where I worked to recover the lost joy of reading. Charles Mann’s 1491 served somewhat
as a travel guide through the Americas while John Urry’s The Tourist Gaze helped make (academic) sense of the tourism we encountered. On
the contemplative life, I read some Parker Palmer, Richard Rohr, and Thomas Merton, and Pico Iyer’s The Art of Stillness. Novels included
Dan Brown’s Inferno, J.M. Coetzee’s Disgrace, and am still working through Edward Rutherford’s New York: A Novel. Up next: the new books
from Anne Lamott and Naomi Klein.
Mike Daniels had a busy and productive year teaching, conducting research, and serving the department, university, and discipline. He taught
courses in geomorphology, soils, natural hazards, introductory human geography, and the history/philosophy of geographic thought. He
developed a fresh perspective on teaching that he incorporated into all his classes by studying the works of scholars in progressive and critical
pedagogy such as John Dewey, Maria Montessori, and Paolo Friere. He exhorted his students to take the reins of their own education and to
push themselves to discover their own truths as they seek to build a more sustainable future for themselves, their communities, and their
planet. And he was reminded of the difficulty of doing this by one astute student who responded: "But Professor Daniels, we don't know
anything about soils yet!" :)
In the research arena, Mike had a productive year. He published articles in Geomorphology, and Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research. Both
papers resulted from collaborations with graduate students who have since moved on to successful careers in hydrologic consulting and
water resource management. He developed a new research project that has been funded by the National Science Foundation to examine
long-term (centennial timescale) patterns of soil erosion and floodplain sedimentation in agricultural landscapes of southern Bohemia which
date to the early Medieval era. This work will be conducted during the coming year in collaboration with colleagues at Czech Agricultural
University, Czech Technical University, and the Czech Academy of Sciences. Mike also received a Fulbright Research Scholar award to support
his stay in Czech Republic during his 2015 sabbatical. He is living with his wife Jane and their two children in Prague, trying his best to
confront the nearly impenetrable intricacies of the Czech language (with some success, he is pleased to report). Finally, Mike is working with
colleagues at the Wisconsin Geological Survey on a book manuscript focused on the geomorphology and agricultural legacy of the Driftless
Area of southwestern Wisconsin. He has been inspired in this effort by studying the works of Aldo Leopold and Wendell Berry. And while
conducting fieldwork in southern Czech Republic he has been frequently reminded of the similarities between the landscapes of these two
different regions, both with rich geological, ecological, and agricultural heritage, but expressing very different historical and social
trajectories.
Mike continued to serve on the editorial board of Geomorphology. He reviewed manuscripts for Geomorphology, Natural Hazards, and
Journal of Hydrology. He reviewed research proposals for National Science Foundation. And he served on numerous departmental, divisional,
and university committees including Honors Council and two departmental tenure and promotion committees.
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FACULTY NEWS, CONTINUED
Andy Goetz is in his seventh year as chair of the department, and enjoys hearing from alumni and colleagues from around the world. In
August, Andy had the opportunity to teach in a summer school program at Aalto University in Helsinki, Finland, and then traveled to Poland
for the International Geographical Union (IGU) conference in Krakow. Andy was happy to finish a co-edited book (with colleague Lucy Budd
of Loughborough University, UK) on The Geographies of Air Transport published by Ashgate (www.ashgate.com/isbn/9781409453314). DU
Geography alum Sean Tierney (PhD, 2010) contributed a chapter on the geography of US air transport for this volume.
On the home front, Andy's son Alex graduated from high school last May, and is now attending the University of California-Berkeley. What is
his major? Environmental Science!
The past year was a full one for Dr. Hillary Hamann. When the last newsletter came out,
she was travelling through Peru with Dr. Erika Trigoso and 10 students studying Andean
Landscapes. When the class ended, Hillary continued south to Chile and the northern part
of the Patagonia region where she utilized a DU Internationalization Grant to examine
sustainability issues related to a proposed dam project (later rejected by the Chilean
Government) and the creation of a new national park. Several close encounters with
Andean Condors and herds of Guanacos were an added bonus. Shortly after returning,
Hillary travelled to Florida to co-present a seminar at the International Center for Academic
Integrity’s annual conference with Dr. Mike Kerwin. Class rosters were full and Hillary had
a wonderful time sharing her experiences with students in Environmental Systems,
Mountain Environments & Sustainability, Hydrology, and Colorado’s Rivers. In the midst of
the busy year, Hillary managed to find time to continue her volunteer work as a crew
Exploring the future Patagonia National Park, Chile.
(photo courtesy Hillary Hamann)
leader with the Wildlands Restoration Volunteers, to train for and run her first two halfmarathons, and to feed herself and her husband from her garden all summer long.
Helen Hazen has just joined the department from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. She has very much enjoyed teaching ‘Our
Dynamic Earth’ and ‘People, Places and Landscapes’ this semester and is looking forward to teaching further classes over the coming year.
Helen continues to pursue her research interests in environmental conservation and health, with several projects in progress. She is currently
working to finalize three articles on home birth and sense of place, based on fieldwork in Minnesota last summer.
Steven Hick continues to direct GIS in the department, including labs, classes, advising, enrollment management, etc. This year saw our
fifth and largest cohort of online MSGISc students graduate, and enrollments and interest in the online graduate degree program continue to
grow steadily. The GIS Certificate Program has seen continued growth and continues to be the feeder program for the graduate degree
program.
The world of online GIS learning continues to demand much time and energy. Setting up the technical infrastructure has been a major time
st
investment as we prepare for the next planned phases of GIS education in the 21 century. I served on the University’s Learning
Management System Committee as we explored other learning management systems on the market and this academic year we began our
migration to the Canvas learning management system. Collaborative learning centers in the GIS lab will be the theme of the next proposal to
go out the door and I am actively working on partnerships to move into the geospatial intelligence community. We also now own a fixedwing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). We taught the first UAV GIS class in the country this past summer and we have several graduate
students with interest in the use of UAVs in a range of spatial applications. It has been a busy year and there is still much work ahead.
Mike Keables continues in his role as interim dean of the Daniel Felix Ritchie School of Engineering and Computer Science. During the past
year, Mike has been actively involved in the design and construction of a new building for the Ritchie School which is presently under
construction and scheduled to open in Fall 2016. The 130,000 sq ft building will be one of the premier engineering facilities in the western
United States. Mike has also been actively seeking external funding to support the Ritchie School, raising over $4M in gifts toward the new
building and for scholarships for undergraduate students. An active search for a permanent dean is underway, and Mike hopes to return to
the department next year. In the mean time, he continues to teach his favorite course, Environmental Systems: Weather and Climate to
students on campus and online.
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FACULTY NEWS, CONTINUED
For the second consecutive year, historic flooding disrupted Mike Kerwin’s September field geology and ecology class. This year the flooding
was caused by the remnants of a Pacific Hurricane, Odile, which was a large category 3 storm that hit Cabo San Lucas Mexico on September
14, 2014. Over the next five days, the storm slowly tracked north along the Baja Peninsula before moving into the SW USA where it stalled,
resulting in nearly nine inches of rain over parts of Arizona and New Mexico. Each year, Mike teaches part of his class (The Geology and
Ecology of the Southwest) at the Southwestern Research Station (SWRS) in the Chiricahua Mountains of SE Arizona. At the SWRS, his class
has an opportunity to examine plant biodiversity and conduct research on how recent climate changes have impacted regional ecosystems.
The students also investigate re-vegetation following wildfire. Since 2002, more than four million acres of ponderosa pine ecosystems have
burned in Arizona including 279,000 acres in the Chiricahua Mountains. The heavy rainfall from the remnants of Hurricane Odile caused
widespread debris flows and flooding below the burned out areas of the Chiricahuas. Fortunately the SWRS was spared the worst of the
flooding, but still lost power and Internet for nearly a week while repairs were made. More significantly the access road to the SWRS along
Cave Creek was washed out in two places and closed indefinitely by the National Forest Service. Despite these “challenges” Mike was able to
get his class of 13 students into the Research Station using a back road where the students enjoyed being “stranded” in one of the most
beautiful and ecologically diverse places in the USA.
Away from the classroom, Mike remained active in academic integrity and climate change research. At DU, Mike is the Faculty Director of the
Honor Code and co-chair of the University’s Academic Integrity Board. In 2014, he also began a three-year appointment as an executive
board member for the International Center for Academic Integrity (ICAI). The ICAI Board met in February to discuss opportunities to promote
integrity beyond the classroom and outside of USA colleges and universities. The discussion was fascinating given that the committee
membership includes experts from Australia, Canada, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates. Mike utilizes these leadership positions to
conduct research and advocate for the educational benefits of academic integrity. In February, he presented a paper at an international
academic integrity conference (with Geography Professor Hillary Hamann) that compared how students write in 2014 compared to the preinternet era. Their results suggest that today’s students - “nurtured on Wikipedia” - use the Internet in a way that makes plagiarism more
prevalent. However, their research also showed that schools with a strong Honor Code have less plagiarism and also produce better writers
In January 2014, Mike was invited back to Colorado College (his Alma mater) to be recognized as an Aficionado by the Southwest Studies
Program. As part of this event, Mike delivered a lunchtime lecture to faculty, staff, students, and community members of Colorado College
and Colorado Springs. The lecture focused on Mike’s current research – Drought and Climate Change in Colorado’s Front Range. For details
on Mike’s drought research and the Aficionado’s lecture, you can listen to a KRCC public radio interview that was conducted as part of the
event: http://krcc.org/post/specter-megadrought-interview-dr-michael-w-kerwin.
Kristopher Kuzera returns to the Department of Geography and the Environment after a year
teaching in the Department of Economics and Geosciences at the US Air Force Academy in
Colorado Springs. At USAFA, Kris taught Introductory and Advanced Remote Sensing courses to
Air Force cadets, as well as supervised several student projects, including mudslide potential
following the Waldo Canyon fire and Ips beetle infestation using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. In
the spring semester, Kris received the Geosciences Instructor of the Semester award at the
Academy.
Kris will serve as the Internship Program Director and teach courses on natural hazards and
cultural landscapes. He continues to conduct research on the effects of climate change and
infectious disease, and is currently exploring spatial research on the geography of the craft beer
industry. In July, Kris and his wife Barbara welcomed their newborn son Oskar into the world,
and already have plans to turn him into a world-class geographer!
Kris and Oskar (photo courtesy Kris Kuzera)
Jing Li has had a good and rewarding year with teaching, research and services. She taught Introduction to GIS, GIS Database Design,
Geographic Information Analysis and Advanced GIS. She is enjoying engaging students in the classroom as well as working with students on
their independent projects. Being the contact of GIS minor, she has been actively working with Academic Advising to promote the minor
across different divisions of the university.
In term of research productivity, Jing submitted grant proposals to the DU PROF program, the UCAR/NCAR Unidata, US Geological Survey and
the National Science Foundation. Her recent work on 3D spatiotemporal data visualization and modeling has been published in Computer,
Environment and Urban Systems. She also gave presentations on using Graphics Processing Units (GPU) to improve the efficiency of
geocomputation for a few professional conferences such as AAG annual meeting. She was also invited to give a guest lecture on the same
topic at Wuhan University during the past summer.
Jing continues to serve on the Board of Directors of AAG Cyber-infrastructure group as well as the Rocky Mountain URISA. In addition to
serving on professional communities, she served as the judge of State level of Geographic Bee where she met future geographers!
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FACULTY NEWS, CONTINUED
Becky Powell maintains a number of research projects that characterize the ecological properties of land cover using a variety of remote sensing
data. She works with graduate students and other collaborators on studies ranging in location from the Amazon floodplain to East Africa to the
Great Plains and temperate forests of North America. She is also part of an NSF-funded project investigating thermal controls on ecosystem
metabolism and function, and how these processes scale from leaves to canopies to regions.
This past fall, Becky was thrilled to have a record number of students in the introductory Remote Sensing course. She is excited by the growing
undergraduate interest in Geographic Information Science, and is committed to growing that program here in our Department.
Becky also remains very active in the University Sustainability Council, which she co-chairs with Mollie Doerner, MS-GIS candidate. She teaches two
undergraduate courses that examine concepts of sustainability through the lens of the University of Denver’s commitment to the public good. She
currently serves as co-chair (along with Chad King, director of the DU Center for Sustainability) of the Chancellor’s Task Force on “Cultivating a
Sustainable Community.”
Don Sullivan continues his research on the climate history of the western US, with field and lab work in the Wet Mountains, Sawatch Range, and on
Grand Mesa. He continues to teach in the Field Quarter, taking students to Mexico for the 15th straight year as part of the FQ.
From the desk of Dr. Paul Sutton - I enjoyed teaching my courses in Population Geography, Statistics, Ecological Economics and my First year
Seminar this year. I have written letters for several outstanding undergraduate students who are applying for prestigious programs such as the Harry
Truman Scholarship. These students include Lily Montessano, Chris Chang, and Nick Stubler. One of my PhD students (Amir Siraj) published a paper
in the prestigious journal Science ( https://www.sciencemag.org/content/343/6175/1154.full ). My other PhD student (Qing Liu) is working with
Chris Elvidge and others at NOAA to develop an open source web site that enables the use of nighttime imagery from the DMSP OLS and VIIRS
nighttime satellite image archives for a broader array of social and physical scientists. I am also working on a paper with alumna Amanda Weaver
who is currently faculty at University of Colorado - Denver. I have published a paper with my most recent PhD student, Joseph Hoover and we are
working on a couple more. Joe Hoover is now part of an NSF funded team at the University of New Mexico who are working on public health issues
and spatial epidemiology. I am still in contact with many alumni (Tilottama Ghosh, Andrea Santoro, Alex Muleh, Ben Tuttle, and Amanda Weaver to
name a few). I have also been publishing ongoing research with several of my former grad students including Ben Tuttle and Tilo Ghosh. Most of the
aforementioned papers can be found on my google scholar site (https://www.sciencemag.org/content/343/6175/1154.full ). I will be taking a leave
of absence from the University of Denver to explore a position as Head of the Discipline: Environmental and Geospatial Science which is housed
within the School of Natural and Built Environments at the University of South Australia in Adelaide, Australia.
Erika Trigoso was happy to continue with her busy teaching load for the past year including Global Environmental Change I, Geography and
Genealogy, People, Places & Landscapes, Sustainability & Human Society, and Intro to Geographic Information Systems.
Dr. Trigoso and her husband, Stephen are also enjoying a more sustainable life with their up and running solar panels. They are quite excited.
She is also researching the vibrant craft beer industry in Denver in collaboration to H.G. Parsa from Hospitality Management. She is investigation
success factors for microbreweries and brewpubs in Denver.
Dr. Trigoso also started working with a 3D projector for GEC I and she is really happy about the prospects for utilizing those in other classes, she
started a collection of geography related 3D DVD and 3D diagrams with content related to a diversity of lectures, and she is more than happy to
share. In addition, Dr. Trigoso is also discussing new inter-term travel courses with some of her restless colleagues, stayed tuned!
In the 2014 calendar year Matthew Taylor spent as much time away from the office as possible! This is not to say that he ignored his teaching here
on campus, but to say that he loves to get into the field with students and alum. Starting in January, Matthew and doctoral student Nikolai Alvarado
presented papers at an international conference in Panama. They took time to explore the Canal Zone and beaches of Panama. The paper that
Nikolai presented at that conference has since been published in the Journal of Latin American Geography. In March, Matthew and doctoral student
Diego Pons journeyed to some of Guatemala’s most remote mountaintops in search of old fir trees with which to reconstruct past climate. That
research, too, has been published recently in Climate Dynamics. In that exploration, we were accompanied by men with guns who lay claim to this
“National” protected area! While there, we think we discovered a new fir – as I write Diego is in Guatemala conducting DNA analysis of firs from
three different regions of Guatemala that have previously been classified as the same tree. If we make a new discovery, we propose a new name –
Abies ponsiti! June saw Matthew back in Gigante, Nicaragua with graduate students Thomas Gary Lavanchy, Nikolai Alvarado, and Nico Earhart. We
all continued our research there. Indeed, the research by Thomas and I into control of water resources there was just published in the International
Journal of Water Resources Development. We also installed several weather stations to begin to better understand recharge of aquifers there. We
also spent plenty of time in the water studying the wave dynamics. July saw Matthew back in Guatemala conducting research in the General
Archives of Central America searching for references to climate change in colonial documents. Back to Nicaragua in October to investigate the
politics and discourse surrounding the impending construction of a Canal through Nicaragua - - right at the point where all of our research has taken
place over the last ten years – exciting times indeed. In November I returned to Guatemala on our NSF and National Geographic funded research to
sample more trees in the high Cuchumatanes and also to lay the groundwork for the first ever Central America Dendroecological Fieldweek (NSF
funded), which we will lead in March 2015. A DU undergraduate student, Mackenzie Boli, has been invited to participate in this field week.
December a crew of DU folk were back in Nicaragua exploring the coast. Several alum popped in to say hello and to join in on the Gigante wave. So,
in short, if you want to get into the field and have a yearning to explore and learn, let me know.
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FACULTY PUBLICATIONS
September 2013-August 2014
Eric Boschmann
Boschmann, E., & Cubbon, E. (2014). Sketch maps and qualitative GIS: Using cartographies of individual spatial narratives in
geographic research. The Professional Geographer, 66(2), 236-248.
Boschmann, E., & Brady, S. (2013). Travel behaviors, sustainable mobility, and transit-oriented developments: A travel counts
analysis of older adults in the Denver, Colorado metropolitan area. Journal of Transport Geography, 33, 1-11.
J. Michael Daniels
Geiger, S., Daniels, J. M., Miller, S. N., & Nicholas, J. (2014). Hydrologic influence of rock glaciers in the La Sal Mountains, Utah.
Arctic, Antarctic and Alpine Research, 46(3), 645-658.
Ryan, S., Bishop, E., & Daniels, J. M. (2014). Influence of large wood on channel morphology and sediment storage in headwater
mountain streams, Fraser Experimental Forest, Colorado. Geomorphology, 217, 73-88.
Russell Fielding
Fielding, R. T. (2014). “The Good Garbage”: Waste to Water in the Small Island Environment of St. Barthélemy. Focus on
Geography, 57(1), 1-13.
Andrew Goetz
Jonas, A. E., Goetz, A. R., & Bhattacharjee, S. (2014). City-regionalism as a Politics of Collective Provision: Regional Transport
Infrastructure in Denver, USA. Urban Studies, 51(11), 2444-2456.
Perl, A. D., & Goetz, A. R. (2014). Corridors, Hybrids and Networks: Three Global Development Strategies for High Speed Rail.
Journal of Transport Geography. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2014.07.006
Goetz, A. R., & Budd, L. (2014). Conclusion. In Andrew R. Goetz & Lucy Budd (Eds.), The Geographies of Air Transport. (pp. 267273). Ashgate.
Budd, L. C., & Goetz, A. R. (2014). The Geographies of Air Transport: An Introduction. In Andrew R. Goetz & Lucy CS Budd (Eds.),
The Geographies of Air Transport. (pp. 1-6). Ashgate.
Goetz, A. R. & Budd, L., Eds. (2014). The Geographies of Air Transport. Ashgate.
Szyliowicz, J. S., & Goetz, A. R. (2014). Getting Realistic About Megaproject Planning: The Case of the New Denver International
Airport. In Bent Flyvberg (Ed.), Megaproject Planning And Management: Essential Readings. Abingdon: Edward Elgar.
978 1 78100 170 7.
Goetz, A. R., & Sutton, C. J. (2014). The geography of deregulation in the US airline industry. In Lucy Budd & Stephen Ison (Eds.),
Low Cost Carriers: Emergence, Expansion and Evolution. Abingdon: Ashgate. 978-1-4094-6903-2.
Bergantino, A. S., & Goetz, A. R. (2013). Infrastructure, Accessibility and Growth: Some Open Issues. International Journal of
Transport Economics, 40(3), 301-311.
Jing Li
Yang, C., Liu, K., Li, Z., Li, W., Wu, H., Xia, J., Huang, Q., Li, J., Sun, M., Miao, L., Zhou, N., & Nebert, D. (2014). GEOSS
Clearinghouse - Integrating Geospatial Resources to Support the Global Earth Observation System of Systems. In Hassan
Karimi (Ed.), (pp. 213). CRC Press.
Li, J., & Wong, D. (2014). STModelViz: A 3D Spatiotemporal GIS Using a Constraint-based Approach. Computers, Environment
and Urban Systems(45), 34–49.
Yang, C., Sun, M., Xia, J., Li, J., Liu, K., Huang, Q., & Gui, Z. (2014). Chapter 12 How to Test Cloud Services? In Chaowei Yang &
Qunying Huang (Eds.), Spatial Cloud Computing: A Practical Approach. (pp. 201-222). Taylor & Francis, CRC.
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FACULTY PUBLICATIONS 2013-2014, CONTINUED
Xu, C., Gui, Z., Li, J., Liu, K., & Huang, Q. (2014). Chapter 13 Open Source Cloud Computing Solutions. In Chaowei Yang & Qunying
Huang (Eds.), Spatial Cloud Computing: A Practical Approach. (pp. 223-240). Taylor & Francis, CRC.
Huang, Q., Xia, J., Sun, M., Liu, K., Gui, Z., Li, J., Xu, C., & Yang, C. (2014). Chapter 14 Readiness of Open Source Cloud. In Chaowei
Yang & Qunying Huang (Eds.), Spatial Cloud Computing: A Practical Approach. (pp. 241-260). Taylor & Francis, CRC.
Yang, C., Huang, Q., Gui, Z., Li, Z., Xu, C., Jiang, Y., & Li, J. (2014). Chapter 17 Cloud Computing Research. In Chaowei Yang &
Qunying Huang (Eds.), Spatial Cloud Computing: A Practical Approach. (pp. 295-301).
Li, J., Li, Z., Huang, Q., Sun, M., & Liu, K. (2014). Chapter 9 Cloud-Enabled Climate@Home. In Chaowei Yang, Qunying Huang,
Zhenlong Li, Chen Xu, & Kai Liu (Eds.), Spatial Cloud Computing: A Practical Approach. (pp. 143-160). Taylor & Francis, CRC.
Li, J., Jiang, Y., Yang, C., & Huang, Q. (2014). Utilizing CUDA-Enabled GPUs to Support 5D Scientific Geovisualization: A Case Study
of Simulating Dust Storm Events. In Xuan Shi, Chaowei Yang, & Volodymyr Kindratenko (Eds.), Modern Accelerating
Technologies for GIScience. (pp. 69-82). Springer.
Rebecca Powell
Lutz, D.A., Powell, R.L., Silman, M.R. 2013. Four decades of Andean timberline migration and implications for biodiversity loss
with climate change. PLoS ONE 8(9): e74496. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0074496.
Paul Sutton
Robert Costanza, Rudolf de Groot, Paul Sutton, Sander van der Ploeg, Sharolyn J. Anderson, Ida Kubiszewski, Stephen Farber, R.
Kerry Turner, Changes in the global value of ecosystem services, Global Environmental Change, Volume 26, May 2014,
Pages 152-158, ISSN 0959-3780, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2014.04.002 .
(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959378014000685 )
Sutton, P. C. (2013). Space Matters: Exploring Problematic Spatial Issues in the Valuation of Ecosystem Services. In Ninan
Karachepone (Ed.), Valuing Ecosystem Services: Methodological Issues and Case Studies. Edward Elgar.
Joseph H. Hoover, Paul C. Sutton, Sharolyn J. Anderson, Arturo C. Keller, Designing and evaluating a groundwater quality
Internet GIS, Applied Geography, Volume 53, September 2014, Pages 55-65, ISSN 0143-6228,
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2014.06.005.
(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0143622814001210)
Luca Coscieme, Federico M. Pulselli, Nadia Marchettini, Paul C. Sutton, Sharolyn Anderson, Sharlynn Sweeney, Energy and
ecosystem services: A national biogeographical assessment, Ecosystem Services, Volume 7, March 2014, Pages 152159, ISSN 2212-0416, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2013.11.003.
(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212041613000892)
Matthew Taylor
Alvarado, N., & Taylor, M. J. (2014). ¿Del mar quién es dueño? Artisanal Fisheries, Tourism Development and the Struggles Over
Access To Marine Resources in Playa Gigante, Nicaragua. Journal of Latin American Geography, 13(3), 37-62.
Steinberg, M. K., Taylor, M. J., & Moran-Taylor, M. J. (2014). Coffee and Mayan Cultural Commodification in Guatemala. The
Geographical Review, 104(3), 361-373.
McSweeney, K., Nielsen, E., Taylor, M. J., Wrathall, D., Pearson, Z., Wang, O., & Plumb, S. (2014). Drug policy as conservation
policy: narco-deforestation. Science, 343, 489-490.
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Eric Boschmann
Boschmann, E., "Intersections between Sustainability and the Public Good," Cross Talk: A Social Justice Colloquium, Third
Annual, University of Denver. (May 2014).
Boschmann, E., "From Old West to New West: Place making and the role of art in Denver’s culture-led economic development,"
Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers, Association of American Geographers, Tampa, Florida. (April
2014).
Boschmann, E., "Learning from others: Qualitative methods in a geographic study of job accessibility," Conversations in the
Disciplines, University of Denver Writing Program, University of Denver. (April 22, 2014).
J. Michael Daniels
Daniels, J. M., "Water Erosion Prediction Project Model Application Workshop," SWCS 69th Annual International Conference,
Soil and Water Conservation Society, Lombard, Illinois. (July 27, 2014 - July 30, 2014).
Russell Fielding
Fielding, R. T., "The Liminal Coastline in the Life of a Whale: Transition, Identity, and Contested Food Production in the Eastern
Caribbean," Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers, AAG, Los Angeles, CA. (April 11, 2013 - Present).
Andrew Goetz
Goetz, A. R., "The Geographic Strategies of Low-Cost Airlines: Comparisons between the United States and Europe,"
International Geographical Union Commission on Transport and Geography, IGU, Krakow, Poland. (August 19, 2014).
Perl, A. D., Goetz, A. R., "Getting Up to Speed: Assessing the Usable Knowledge from Global High Speed Rail Experience for the
United States," Annual Conference of the Transportation Research Forum, Transportation Research Forum, San Jose,
California. (March 13, 2014).
Goetz, A. R., Ratner, K., "Using a Typological Approach for Transit-Oriented Development and Impacts on Travel Behavior in
Denver," National Center for Intermodal Transportation and Economic Competitiveness, Mississippi State University,
Starkville, Mississippi. (November 1, 2013).
Goetz, A. R., "Innovative Approaches to Improved Intermodal Transportation Infrastructure Funding and Financing through
Public-Private Partnerships," National Center for Intermodal Transportation and Economic Competitiveness, Mississippi
State University, Starkville, Mississippi. (October 31, 2013).
Hillary Hamann
Kerwin, M. W., Hamann, H. B., "Nurtured on Wikipedia: Can an Honor Code Create Better Writers?," Annual Conference of the
International Center for Academic Integrity, International Center for Academic Integrity, Jacksonville, FL. (March 1,
2014).
Steve Hick
Hick, S. R., "Crime Mapping & Analysis," URISA Crime Mapping & Analysis Workshop, URISA, Denver, CO. (April 18, 2014).
Hick, S. R., "Colorado Geospatial Workforce Development," GIS Colorado, GIS Colorado, Grand Junction, CO. (January 24, 2014).
Hick, S. R., "Blended learning and the future of GIS education," GIS in the Rockies, Denver, CO. (September 9, 2013).
Mike Kerwin
Kerwin, M. W., Hesse, D. D., "Strategies for Grading Writing and Promoting Academic Integrity," Office of Teaching and Learning
New Faculty Workshop Webinar, University of Denver Office of Teaching and Learning, University of Denver and
Online. (August 28, 2014).
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FACULTY PRESENTATIONS 2013-2014, CONTINUED
Kerwin, M. W., "Who is the DU undergraduate?," Office of Teaching and Learning New Faculty Orientation, DU Office of
Teaching and Learning, University of Denver and Online. (July 23, 2014).
Kerwin, M. W., Olson, K., "DU’s Honor Code: Update to Faculty Senate," Faculty Senate, University of Denver Faculty Senate,
University of Denver and Online. (April 25, 2014).
Kerwin, M. W., Hamann, H. B., "Nurtured on Wikipedia: Can an Honor Code Create Better Writers?," Annual Conference of the
International Center for Academic Integrity, International Center for Academic Integrity, Jacksonville, FL. (March 1,
2014).
Kerwin, M. W., "Consequences of potential mid-21st century megadrought in the Front Range," Colorado College Aficionados
Program, The Hulbert Center for Southwest Studies, Colorado College. (January 29, 2014).
Kerwin, M. W., "Academic Teaching, Research, and the Arctic," Association of Early Career Polar Scientists Webinar Series,
Association of Early Career Polar Scientists, University of Denver and Online. (November 7, 2013).
Kerwin, M. W., "DU’s Journey Toward Becoming an Honor Code School," 2013 Conduct Review Board Orientation, Office of
Student Conduct, University of Denver. (October 4, 2013).
Kerwin, M. W., "Now What? Ecosystem Recovery after a Decade of Wildfire," Monthly Seminar for the Community of Portal, AZ,
Southwestern Research Station, Southwestern Research Station. (September 25, 2013).
Jing Li
Li, J., "Utilize GPU to support geocomputation," Wuhan University International Forum for Interdisciplinary Sciences and
Engineering, Wuhan University. (June 14, 2014 - June 15, 2014).
Finn, M., Li, J., Mattli, D., "Small-Scale Raster Map Projection using the Compute Unified Device Architecture (CUDA),"
International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS), Mid-Term Symposium Commission IV 2014,
ISPRS. (May 14, 2014 - May 16, 2014).
Li, J., Zhang, T., "Online Task Scheduling for LiDAR Data Preprocessing on Hybrid GPU/CPU Devices: A Reinforcement Learning
Approach," 110th AAG Annual Meeting, Tampa. (April 8, 2014 - April 12, 2014).
Rebecca Powell
Messinger, M., Powell, R., Silman, M., Wright, M., Nichols, B. Characterizing tree canopy temperature heterogeneity using an
unmanned aircraft-borne thermal imager. Poster presentation: American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, San
Francisco, 9-13 December 2013.
Powell, R. L., Yoo, E.-H., Still, C.J. Estimating the C3 and C4 vegetation composition of African savannas and representing the
spatial distribution of associated uncertainties. Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers, Tampa, 812 April 2014.
Don Sullivan
Sullivan, D. G., "Smuggler Meadow, Colorado: a study in paleoclimate reconstruction using pollen, humification, and
stratigraphy analyses," Annual Meeting, Association of American Geographers, Tampa, Florida. (April 10, 2014 - April 11,
2014).
Paul Sutton
Sutton, P. C., "Voter Suppression and the Ecological Fallacy: A Colorado Case Study," American Association of Geographers,
AAG, Tampa, Florida. (April 9, 2014 - April 11, 2014).
Sutton, P. C., "Alone in the Void: Getting Real about the fragile and tenuous nature of modern civilization," Distinguished
Speaker Series, Barbara Hardy Institute, University of South Australia.
Luca, C., Serena, M., Sutton, P. C., Nadia, M., "Using night-time satellite imagery to visualize emergy density in territorial
systems," WIT Sustainable City Conference, University of Siena, University of Siena. (September 23, 2014 - September
25, 2014). http://www.wessex.ac.uk/14-conferences/sustainable-city-2014.html
Federico, P. M., Luca, C., Sutton, P. C., Simone, B., Nadia, M., "Identifying the emergy basis of ecosystem services," Conference
of the Italian Chemical Society, Italian Chemical Society, University of Calabria. (September 7, 2014 - September 12,
2014).
P a g e | 18
FACULTY PRESENTATIONS 2013-2014, CONTINUED
Sutton, P. C., "Alone in the Void: Getting Real about the fragile and tenuous nature of modern civilization," DU Geography
Colloquium, Department of Geography and the Environment, University of Denver. (May 2, 2014).
Matthew Taylor
Taylor, M. J., "Finding the Plot: The Land (and other) Grabs along Nicaragua’s Pacific Coast," Colloquium presentation at
University of Colorado, Boulder, University of Colorado, Boulder, Boulder, CO. (April 4, 2014).
Taylor, M. J., Pons Gandini, D., "Climate Change and Dendrochronology in Guatemala," Colloquium presentation at Universidad
del Valle, Guatemala., Universidad del Valle, Guatemala, Guatemala City, Guatemala. (March 12, 2014).
Taylor, M. J., "Land Conflict in Nicaragua," Korbel’s Latin American Studies Association discussion on Land Rights and Conflict in
Central America: Reviving Revolutionary Idealogies., Korbel School of International Studies, Denver, CO. (January 30,
2014).
Taylor, M. J., "The Land Grab along the Pacific Coast in Nicaragua," Conference of Latin Americanist Geographers, Conference of
Latin Americanist Geographers, Panama City, Panama. (January 2, 2014 - January 8, 2014).
Eric Boschmann
Boschmann, E., "Internationalizing urban geographic teaching and research: From Guatemala to Buenos Aires,"
Faculty/Curriculum Development Grant (Internationalization), $3,000.00. (July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015).
J. Michael Daniels
Daniels, J. M., "U.S. - Czech Republic collaboration: soil erosion, floodplain sedimentation, and agricultural sustainability over
decade to centennial timescales," Grant, Sponsored by National Science Foundation, Federal, $61,822.00. (August 15, 2014
- July 31, 2015).
Daniels, J. M., U.S.--Czech Fulbright Research Scholar Award to conduct sabbatical research at Czech Agricultural University in
Prague
Andrew Goetz
Goetz, A. R., "The Geographic and Economic Development Impacts of Low-Cost Airlines in Peripheral Regions,"
Faculty/Curriculum Development Grant (Internationalization), $1,600.00, Awarded: February 11, 2014. (March 15, 2014 March 31, 2015).
Hillary Hamann
Hamann, H. B., "Dams & Parks: Exploring Conservation, Development and Sustainability in Northern Patagonia," International
Hamann, H. B., "Dams & Parks: Exploring Conservation, Development and Sustainability in Northern Patagonia,"
International Innovation Grants (Internationalization), $2,500.00, Submitted: January 1, 2013, Awarded: February 27, 2013.
(December 14, 2013 - December 25, 2013).
Jing Li
Li, J., "Travel Grant for Wuhan University International Forum for Interdisciplinary Sciences and Engineering," Sponsored by
Wuhan University, Foreign/international entity, $1,500.00. (June 13, 2014 - June 15, 2014).Travel grant to attend the
conference
P a g e | 19
FACULTY RESEARCH OR INSTITUTIONAL GRANTS AND CONTRACTS
2013-2014, CONTINUED
Rebecca Powell
Powell, R. L., "Collaborative Research: Thermal controls on ecosystem metabolism and function: scaling from canopies to
regions," Sponsored by National Science Foundation, Federal, $74,271.00. (February 14, 2013 - January 31, 2015).
Powell, R.L., "Land and resource use on the Amazon floodplain under evolving management systems and environmental change:
Fish, forests, cattle, and settlements. Sponsored by NASA Land-Cover/Land-Use Change. (April 2012 - March 2015).
Matthew Taylor
Taylor, M. J., "Collaborative Research: Tree-Ring Drought Reconstructions in Guatemala and Honduras," Grant, Sponsored by
National Science Foundation, Federal, $61,847.00. (July 1, 2013 - December 31, 2016).
Taylor, M. J., "Climate Change and Sustainability in Guatemala: Using Spanish Colonial Documents to Verify Climate
Reconstructions and to Document Human Responses to Climate Change," Professional Research Opportunities for
Faculty—PROF (DU), $16,460.00, Submitted: January 15, 2014, Awarded: May 1, 2014. (June 1, 2014 - October 2, 2015).
Taylor, M. J., Quigley, M., "Mitigation of environment and socioeconomic consequences of water scarcity in rural landscape
conversion," Public Good Fund Grant (CCESL), $9,500.00, Submitted: March 1, 2014, Awarded: May 1, 2014. (June 1,
2014 - June 1, 2015).
Taylor, M. J., "Looking for Old Wood in Colonial Buildings to reconstruct Climate in Guatemala," Faculty Research Fund—FRF
(DU), $3,000.00, Submitted: April 1, 2013, Awarded: June 1, 2013. (June 30, 2013 - June 1, 2014).
Taylor, M. J., "Creating a Public Web-Based GIS for Rural Nicaragua," Public Good Fund Grant (CCESL), $9,000.00, Submitted:
March 1, 2013, Awarded: May 1, 2013. (June 1, 2013 - June 1, 2014). Creating a Public Web-Based GIS for Rural
Nicaragua
Taylor, M. J., "Searching for Old Trees in the Mam Region of Guatemala's Cuchumatan Mountains: Reconstructing Past Droughts
to Inform Future Populations," Sponsored by National Geographic Society Committee for Research and Exploration,
Private, $21,860.00. (June 1, 2013 - September 15, 2015).
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STUDENT NEWS
Nikolai Alvarado, Ph.D. Student was the recipient of several awards this year. He received the Graduate International Grant (GIG) from
the University of Denver for the purpose of international service learning in Nicaragua. He also received the University of Denver’s Graduate
nd
Studies Doctoral Fellowship for Inclusive Engagement Award. The 2 World Small-Scale Fisheries Congress awarded him with a grant to
present his research results at their conference in Merida, Mexico in September. Nikolai also published the results of his MA thesis, titled
“¿Del mar quién es dueño? Artisanal Fisheries, Tourism Development and the Struggles Over Access to Marine Resources in Playa Gigante,
Nicaragua,” in the Journal of Latin American Geography.
Ph.D. Student, Gary Lavanchy received two awards in support of his research in Nicaragua which include the Association of American
Geographers Dissertation Research Grant and the Geological Society of American Research Grant.
At the meeting of the Nordic Association of Development Studies in Tromsø it was announced that Ph.D. Student, Anna Sveinsdottir’s
MSc thesis was awarded the distinction of the most outstanding MSc thesis with development studies delivered at a Norwegian University in
2014.
M.S. online student, James White was accepted as a student ambassador for EcoFlight’s 2014 Flight Across America program which took
place in Aspen. He joined students from around Colorado to fly over wild lands in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming as well as meet with
experts and state elected officials regarding wilderness initiatives.
Graduate Students Grace Kellner, Meghan Mooney, Diego Pons, and Syliva Brady
attended the joint regional meeting of the Rocky Mountain/Great Plains and Southwest
Association of American Geographers in Albuquerque, NM from October 23-25, 2014. The
group won first place in the team Geobowl competition with Sylvia Brady placing in the top
six individual scorers. Meghan Mooney won third place in the paper presentation and
Diego Pons won second place in the poster presentation.
Matthew Layman, M.S. Student, had a map published in Gretchen Peterson's new book
Grace Kellner, Meghan Mooney, Diego Pons, and Sylvia
Brady at the AAG regional meeting
"GIS Cartography: A Guide to Effective Map Design, Second Edition". The book was
published in June. He was also an intern at Noble Energy this summer and will be working
there full time next fall. You can find the book at http://www.amazon.com/GISCartography-Effective-Design-Edition/dp/1482220679
(photo courtesy Sylvia Brady)
M.A. Student, Stephen Rijo was recently awarded a fellowship with BikeDenver that will run until December 2015 and is funded by the
Boulder-based national bike advocacy organization PeopleForBikes. This fellowship added Steve to BikeDenver’s part-time staff as the
Business Network Coordinator where he will conduct business outreach to garner local support around the bicycle, improved cycling
infrastructure, and other related topics. Steve is excited to work for BikeDenver and believes this work will dovetail nicely with his MA thesis
research on the economic impacts of improved cycling infrastructure in Denver.
M.A. Student, Walter Scheib is currently a research intern in the Denver Mayor's
Office of Sustainability. As part of a small team, he conducts various research
projects that help Denver meet its 2020 Sustainability Goals and also allow the city
to continue serving as a national model for city-level sustainability initiatives.
th
November 19 was International GIS Day and M.S. online student, Erin
Sevatson celebrated in Dubai, UAE! Her picture was included on ESRI’s buzzfeed
showing geogeeks around the world. http://www.buzzfeed.com/esri/39-geogeekswho-ruled-instagram-on-gisday-gchv
New and returning graduate students attended the annual Graduate Student Fall
Retreat at the field station on Mount Evans in September. The retreat serves as an
opportunity to welcome new graduate students as well as provide information and
advice. It is also an opportunity for all graduate students to come together after the
summer and welcome in the new academic year.
Erin Sevatson in Dubai for International GIS Day
(photo courtesy Erin Sevatson)
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ADDITIONAL CURRENT AND RECENT STUDENT PRESENTATIONS/PAPERS
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Nikolai Alvarado- Alvarado, N.A., Taylor, M.J. 2014. ¿Del mar quién es dueño? Artisanal Fisheries, Tourism Development and the
Struggles Over Access To Marine Resources in Playa Gigante, Nicaragua. Journal of Latin American Geography, 13(3): 37-62.
Sylvia Brady- “Mobility and Sustainable Transportation in Latin America: Successes, Failures, and Diffusion of Ideas.” Great Plains
Rocky Mountain Annual Meeting Student Paper Competition (October, 2014).
Lanna Giauque- “Programming Success: Idle Reduction in Schools.” Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Tampa,
FL (April 2014).
Taylor Hafley- “Changing Geographic Pattersn of High-and Low-income Groups in Eight United States Metropolitan Areas.”
Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL (April 2014).
Joseph Hoover- “Communicating Water Quality Information Using Internet GIS.” Association of American Geographers Annual
Meeting, Tampa, FL (April 2014).
Grace Kellner- “Land Sharing vs. Land Sparing: Agricultural Management Impact on Pollinator Abundance and Crop Production in
an Urban Matrix.” Rocky Mountain Annual Meeting Student Paper Competition (October, 2014).
Gary Lavanchy- LaVanchy, G.T., & Taylor, M.J. (2014). Tourism as Tragedy? Common problems with water in postrevolutionary Nicaragua. International Journal of Water Resources Development. DOI:10.1080/07900627.2014.985819
Gary Lavanchy- “Tourism as tragedy? Common Problems with water in post-revolutionary Nicaragua.” Association of American
Geographers Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL (April 2014).
Meghan Mooney- “Using Qualitative GIS and Sketch Mapping to Assess Individual Walking Behavior, Perceptions, and
Experiences.” Rocky Mountain Annual Meeting Student Paper Competition (October, 2014).
Meghan Mooney- “Pedestrian Mobility in Denver, Colorado.” Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL
(April 2014).
Diego Pons- “Projected Prevalence of Malaria in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala for the years 2020 and 2050 using Global Circulation
Models and Ecolgoical Niches.” With S. Neeley, Rocky Mountain Annual Meeting Student Poster Competition (October, 2014).
Walter Scheib- “Examining Accessibility to Residential Energy Efficiency Programs.” Association of American Geographers Annual
Meeting, Tampa, FL (April 2014).
Amir Siraj- Siraj. A.S. , Santos-Vega. M, Bouma. M. J, Yadeta D., Ruiz Carrascal D., Pascual. M. (2014). Altitudinal Changes in Malaria
Incidence in Highlands of Ethiopia and Columbia. Science 343 (6175): 1154-1158.
Aaron Zettler-Mann- “The Effectiveness of Digital Photogrammetry in Quantifying Small Scale River Bar Change.” Association of
American Geographers Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL (April 2014).
Grace Kellner presents at the AAG regional meeting
Sylvia Brady presents at the AAG regional meeting
(photo courtesy of Meghan Mooney)
(Photo courtesy Meghan Mooney)
Stay up to date on student accomplishments, department news and events by visiting
http://www.du.edu/nsm/departments/geography/newsandevents.html
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Congratulations to our AY 2013-2014 Graduates!
Doctoral Program
Sharon Gable
Joseph Hoover
Master’s Program:
Geography
Taylor Hafley
Jeffrey Honke
Aaron Zettler-mann
Master’s Program: GISc
Zachary Adams (online)
Zachary Ancona (online)
Nashwa Bolling
Ashley Burns (online)
Jean Davidson (online)
Richard Joseph (online)
James McAndrew
Jennifer Muha (online)
Jeffrey Orlowski (online)
Laura Pernice (online)
Megan Ross (online)
Jennifer Todd (online)
Bachelor’s Program: Environmental Science
William Adicoff
Samantha Allen
Olivia Anton
Cameron Bentley
Jaclyn Best
Sydney DeMars
Nhat Do
Alexandra Goldberg
Jill Hamilton
James Howe
Erin Husi
Jessica Jortberg
Ellen Mango
Jacob Maas (double major with Geography)
Jared Mazurek (double major with Geography)
Blake Minor
Lily Montesano
Paige Mullen
Matt Reimann
Taylor Schutte
William Summitt
Bergen Tjossem
Sean Toriumi
Mika Ulmet
Laura Waksman
Jewell Wilson
Samantha Winsett
Bachelor’s Program: Geography
Chris Boutilier
Ellen Claussen
Katie Collins
Mollie Doerner
Matthew Farrell
Jillian Feiger
Lanna Giauque
Amelia Hahn
Tracy Ostrofsky
Kaitlyn O’Sullivan
Shayleen Ottman
Kathryn Saphire
Jedidiah Sash
Nichole Schmitt
Hadley Siegel
Devon Wallis
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HAPPENINGS
We have enjoyed many opportunities to gather with faculty, staff, students,
alumni, and friends this year.
In February, members of the department participated in DU’s Zero Waste Hockey Game.
Positioned at locations throughout Magness Arena, our goal was to help fans correctly dispose
of their waste in proper receptacles in order to divert as much waste from the landfill as
possible. The Center for Sustainability has a goal of diverting an average of 80% of game waste
from hockey games away from the landfill to recycling or composting
(find out more about the Center for Sustainability at www.du.edu/sustainability).
David & Amanda O’Connor, Zero Waste Hockey Game
(photo courtesy Center for Sustainability)
This year’s Colorado Geographic Bee was held in Sturm hall on Friday, April 4, 2014.
Several of our faculty and graduate students volunteered as judges, score keepers,
and photographer for the event. Dr. Andrei Kutateladze, Dean of the Division of
Natural Sciences and Mathematics gave the welcome and final round moderator was
Greg Dobbs, longtime ABC News correspondent and host of “Colorado State of Mind”.
For the third year in a row, Pranit Nanda, an eighth grader at Aurora Quest K-8,
finished in first place. Pranit went on to finish fourth in the National Geographic Bee.
In May we held our annual bowling competition, the Keables Kup! The competition
was strong, but Ph.D. student Gary Lavanchy managed to take home first place and
the coveted kup.
We welcomed June with our Spring Awards Ceremony and Graduation Picnic,
complete with burgers, hotdogs, bratwursts, and great company. We recognized the
many accomplishments of faculty and students from the last year, celebrated our
graduating students, and presented the following 2013-2014 awards:

Top three finishers, Colorado Geographic Bee
(photo courtesy Gary Lavanchy)
Matthew Farrell, Lanna Giauque, and Nicole Schmitt- Dr. Thomas M.
Griffiths Memorial Award: In recognition of undergraduate scholarship and
independent research in Geography

Bergen Tjossem- Environmental Science Program Award: In recognition of
outstanding scholarship and research in Environmental Science

Selam Tesfazion- David B. Longbrake Award for Merit in Geography: In
recognition of exceptional departmental service
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Taylor Hafley and Amir Siraj- Dr. Robert D. Rudd Memorial Award: In
recognition of graduate scholarship, research, and/or exceptional departmental
service in Geography
Laura Waksman- Professor Moras L. Shubert Award: In recognition of
outstanding accomplishment by a senior in Environmental Science
Brett Sherman- Alan Bryce Henry Memorial Scholarship: Given to an
undergraduate student who has demonstrated outstanding scholarship in
Environmental Science
Keables Kup, 2014 (photo courtesy Gary Lavanchy)
Matthew Layman and Katrina Waechter- Dr. Laurance C. Herold Award:
In recognition of Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant
Will Kiniston, David Longbrake, Doug Clark, and
Joyce Herold, Spring Picnic 2014
Congratulations to our graduating students, Spring Picnic 2014
In October, the Welcome Back Fall Fiesta
provided a festive start to the academic
year with the taco and ice cream food
trucks.
We wrapped up the year on November 11
with our inaugural Breakfast at the
Boettch! All of our majors, minors, and
graduate students were invited to a
breakfast of bagels, fruit, coffee, and
juice. The morning of the breakfast
happened to occur during November’s
record-breaking arctic cold so attendance
was modest, but those who did attend
enjoyed the morning treat and
conversations during the final week of
classes during the fall quarter.
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COLLOQUIUM UPDATE
Throughout the quarter, the Department hosts a Colloquium series in which scholars and professionals are invited to present
their work related to geography and the environment. These lectures are open to all faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends
of the Department. Each lecture is held in the Boettcher Auditorium with a reception immediately following in Boettcher West,
Room 123. Colloquia presentations for 2014 include:
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Steve Hick, University of Denver & Joe Falconer, University College, University of Denver- “Unmanned Aerial Systems
(UAS)- What’s on the Horizon in Geography and GIS?” October 30, 2014
Dr. Hannah Vander Zanden, University of Utah- “Leveraging Spatial Information in Biogeochemical Tracers to Track
Animal Migration,” October 23, 2014
Dr. John Komlos, University of Berlin- “Capitalism with a Human Face,” October 16, 2014
Dr. Joseph Berry, University of Denver, Colorado State University – “Eye-Witness to GIS’s 40 year Evolution/Revolution,”
October 2, 2014
Dr. David Salisbury, University of Richmond- “Assassinations in the Amazon: Edwin Chota, Saweto, and the Ashéninka
Quest for Environmental Justice,” September 25, 2014
Graduate Student Showcase Lightening Round Presentations, September 18, 2014
o Nikolai Alvarado- “¿Del mar quién es dueño? Artisanal Fisheries, Tourism Development and the Struggles Over
Access to Marine Resources in Gigante, Nicaragua”
o Sylvia Brady- “Mobility and Aging in Denver, CO: Travel Behavior, Mobility Barriers, and Perceptions of Transit”
o Anthony Timpson- “Volumetric Pipeline Environment Analysis”
John Nolte, Zapata Incorporated- “GISP Certification,” May 29, 2014
Dr. Susan Schulten, University of Denver- “After the Gold Rush (the Origins of the Colorado Territory and the University
of Denver),” May 22, 2014- Laurance C. Herold Memorial Lecture
Dr. Paul Sutton, University of Denver- “Alone in the Void: Getting Real about the Fragile and Tenuous Nature of Modern
Civilization,” May 1, 2014
Dr. Edwin Castellanos, Universidad del Valle, Guatemala- “Adaptation and Mitigation Strategies to Climate Change in
Guatemala and Mesoamerica,” April 24, 2014
Nikki Robles, Risk Analyst & Zack DeLaune, Environmental Specialist, FEMA- “Colorado Floods 2013,” April 17, 2014
Dr. James Clark, Wheaton College “Modeling the Paleohydrology of the Great Lakes: The Past 20,000 Years,” April 3,
2014
Dr. Jacques Charlier, Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium- “European National High Speed Rail Systems: Towards a
Slow and Difficult Integration,” March 11, 2014
Parry Burnap, Denver Bike Sharing- “Denver, Colorado- Truly an Outstanding Laboratory for Geographers, and other
Change Makers,” February 27, 2014
Larry Perez, Author- “Snake in the Grass: An Everglades Invasion,” February 20, 2014
Dr. Sarah Romano, University of Northern Colorado- “From Resource Management to Political Activitsm: Extralocal
Allies and the Construction of Multi-Scalar Water Networks in Nicaragua,” February 6, 2014
Francis Rengers, Ph.D. Candidate, University of Colorado at Boulder- “The Spatial Pattern and Evolution of Wildfire
Erosion in a First-order Drainage Basin in the Colorado Front Range,” January 23, 2014
Dr. Emily Wakild, Boise State University- “A Conspiracy of Obstacles and a Forest of Secrets: Measuring Nature in the
Peruvian Amazon,” January 16, 2014
If you are intersted in presenting for our colloquium series please let us know.
[email protected]
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ALUMNI AND FRIENDS: SPOTLIGHTS
Adjunct faculty member, Joseph Berry continues to present papers and keynotes around the state. Additionally, the Beyond Mapping
Compilation Series of Beyond Mapping columns in GeoWorld over the past 25 years is nearly complete
(http://www.innovativegis.com/basis/BeyondMappingSeries/) with nearly 1000 pages and more than 750 figures providing a comprehensive
and longitudinal perspective of the underlying concepts, considerations, issues and evolutionary development of modern geotechnology. He
is completing a reorganization of the Chronological Listing of columns into Applications, Operations and Interactive listings that organizes this
tsunami of information into relevant groupings to match readers’ interests. Completion of a combined Index is next.
Douglas Clark, Ph.D., works as a Physical and Social Scientist for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). He received his graduate degrees in
Geography from the University of Denver and has taught classes in the department from time to time.
At the Bureau of Reclamation during the 2014 calendar year Doug has been involved in a variety of Research and Development projects:

An electronic survey evaluating the various methods Reclamation uses to communicate with and receive feedback from
constituents, partners, and the public. These methods include face to face meetings, phone calls, emails, webinars, websites, video
teleconferencing, and social media.

An electronic survey to understand how USBR administrators, scientists, and engineers manage disputes over science when they
impede water allocations. This effort and an associated literature review will result in a Directives and Standards Manual for
managing disputes of this type in 2015. Collaborative learning processes have emerged as the most promising approaches for
management of disputes over science—superior to other techniques such as direct discussions, peer review panels, public
education, and adaptive management.

A Department of the Interior (DOI) and USBR development effort to promote state of the art data management practices across the
agency in the wake of Presidential Executive Order on Open Data. See: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-pressoffice/2013/05/09/executive-order-making-open-and-machine-readable-new-default-government-.

A development effort to evaluate potential uses of unmanned aerial systems to gather geospatial data. See:
http://rmgsc.cr.usgs.gov/UAS/WA_BORRiverSedimentMonitoring.shtml Doug has been involved in a DOI task force to develop a
Departmental road map for UAS implementation. He analyzed electronic survey data and found that UAS would be useful for
frequently acquiring data over small areas such as reservoirs and water infrastructure.
Class of 2009, Jeff La Frenierre, M.A. Geography, completed his Ph.D. (Geography) at Ohio State University, and is currently Assistant
Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN. He states “If I couldn’t get back at DU,
then a small liberal arts geography department was just my speed.”
After graduating in June 2013, Sustainability minor Natasha Hilton accepted a position at Urban Land Institute (ULI) in Washington, D.C.,
where she now works with Advisory Services program.
Tilottama Ghosh, Ph.D. Geography, 2010, was a co-author along with Professor Paul Sutton on an article titled “Using Nighttime Satellite
Imagery as a Proxy Measure of Human Well-Being.” The article was published in Sustainability in November, 2013. You can find the article at
http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/5/12/4988/htm.
Class of 2014, Jeffrey Honke, M.A. Geography is continuing to work with the USGS Geosciences and Environmental Change science center in
Denver. His thesis work on the Snowmass Ice Age Fossil site has been published in articles found in the current Quaternary Research volume
dedicated to the world class fossil discovery. He is currently working on the paleo-desert wetland deposits in the Mojave Desert.
This fall, Ellen Mango, B.A. Environmental Science and Geography,
2014, and Jessica Markowitz, B.A. Environmental Science, 2013 hiked
to Everest Base Camp. Ellen stated “The landscape is ridiculous and so
exciting. It was incredible and a little bit scary. It was kind of an
eerie/spiritual experience. Jessi Markowitz and I hiked in in the late
afternoon after all the tour groups had left and we were the only people
there. The sun was setting and you just find yourself standing in the
middle of this glacier with the most massive peaks in the world
surrounding you. You can hear the ice fall creaking, see avalanches and
rock slides happening in every direction, and look at all the prayer flags
and memorials of deceased climbers. I have such a huge respect for
those mountains it was so humbling. Thinking about how that place
came to be and how it continues to evolve is so mind boggling! “
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ALUMNI AND FRIENDS: SPOTLIGHTS, CONTINUED
Christian Steinbarth, B.A. Geography, 2012, completed his MS degree in International Development Studies with a focus on social enterprise
and entrepreneurship in post-conflict contexts from the University of Amsterdam. Christian now lives in Monrovia, Liberia. He states, “I’m
currently designing/planning/lobbying-for a social enterprise special economic zone. Essentially, a geographically delimitated area where I’ve
implemented policy that makes a business/investment climate that is favorable and competitive; relative to that outside the zone and
regionally in West Africa as well. Contrary to the traditional special economic zone (SEZ) model, however, the focus is on social impact rather
than personal wealth generation. ie. human capital capacity development, scalable employment generation, small-holder farmer inclusion,
inclusion of marginalized groups in formal economic activity etc.”
This year’s ESRI User Conference, held in San Diego in July, brought out many of our alumni!
Bridget (Dolan) Kelly, MS GISc, 2002
Jody Daline, GIS certificate, 2010
Keri (Konarska) Blough, MS GISc, 2001
Elthron Anderson, MS GISc, 2008
Tabatha Waldron, MS GISc, 2013
CALLING ALL ALUMNI
We would love to hear from you!
Go to our website and click on the Alumni Update Form to send us updates
P a g e | 27
Thank you to our Contributors!
The Geography & the Environment Department faculty, staff, and students would like to express our sincere
appreciation and gratitude to the following alumni and friends for their financial contributions to support the
Gene
and Ursula
Humburg
department
this
year:
Christine J. and Steven A. Allt
Olivia Serra Anton
Susan and Chuck Aoki
Tennille W. and Troy A. Blair
Leah S. KonradyJoyce L. Herold
David B. Longbrake
Neil E. and Renae B. Humburg
William A. and Jean P. Peterman
Michael and Dawn Keables
Patricia L. Rudd
hristopher J. Sutton
Brett J. Machovina
Terrence J. and Linda L. Toy
Natalie G. and William H. Brenton Fund at Schwab
Ellen Joyce Mango
Charitable
Janice L. Vaughn
Robert M. and Lynn R. Butcher
Brent N. Petrie
Arthur Viterito
Douglas Clark
Tracy Hannah Ostrofsky
Ellen Madeline Claussen
Preston N. Poythress and Astrid M. Klopsch
Wendy E. and Craig Fitzner
Jennifer Ann Taylor
John C. Haartz
Terrence and Linda Toy
Patricia A. and Richard Healey
Benjamin Tuttle
Frank Cray and Nina L. Healy
Susan C. Wood and Howard Davis
Michelle Zimmerman
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