Courses by Track

Students majoring in geography select one of four tracks to specialize in:

  1. Cities, Citizenship and Migration;
  2. Environment, Economy and Sustainability;
  3. Globalization, Health and Development; and
  4. GIS, Mapping and Society.

1. Cities, Citizenship and Migration (CCM)

Why do people move, and where do they go?  What are the constraints and opportunities for migrants as they settle and integrate in new cities and new nations?  How are cities formed and what are the forces that impact their economic and cultural development?  The courses in this track focus on themes of urbanization and human movement, emphasizing the importance of labor and housing, as well as cultural processes and historical forms of discrimination that shape where people live and work.  Students in this track will develop an understanding of the intersections of power and place as they pertain to migration and immigrant life, citizenship and belonging, and the production of urban space.

  • GEOG 100 — Introduction to Geography
  • GEOG 102 — World Regions
  • GEOG 123 — Introduction to Globalization
  • GEOG 200 — Intro to Human Geography
  • GEOG 203 — Geographies of Migration
  • GEOG 208 — Geography of the World Economy: Regional Fortunes and the Rise of Global Markets
  • GEOG 230 — Urbanization and Development: Geographies of Global Inequality
  • GEOG 236 — Development and Challenge in Greater China
  • GEOG 245 — Geodemographics: Population, Diversity, and Place
  • GEOG 272 — Geographies of Environmental Justice
  • GEOG 276 — Introduction to Political Geography
  • GEOG 277 — Geography of Cities
  • GEOG 301 — Cultural Geography
  • GEOG 302 — The Pacific Northwest
  • GEOG 310 — Immigrant America: Trends and Policies from a Geographic Perspective
  • GEOG 331 — Poverty, Care and Responsibility
  • GEOG 332 --- Black Feminist Geographies
  • GEOG 335 — The Developing World
  • GEOG 337 --- Migration and Development in China
  • GEOG 342 — Geography of Inequality
  • GEOG 344 — Migration in the Global Economy
  • GEOG 373 — Food and Community: Cultural Practices in the Hispanic World
  • GEOG 377 — Urban Political Geography
  • GEOG 403 — Contemporary European Migration
  • GEOG 404 — Abolition Geographies
  • GEOG 431 — Geography and Gender
  • GEOG 432 — Geography of Power and Privilege
  • GEOG 435 — Industrialization and Urbanization in China
  • GEOG 436 — South Asian Development
  • GEOG 438 — Cities of East Asia
  • GEOG 439 — Gender, Race and the Geography of Employment
  • GEOG 445 — Geography of Housing
  • GEOG 451 — Cultural Landscapes of Latin America
  • GEOG 455 --- Genealogical Geographies
  • GEOG 461 — Urban Geographic Information Systems
  • GEOG 467 — Law, Justice and the Environment
  • GEOG 471 — Methods of Resource Analysis
  • GEOG 472 — Race, Nature, and Power
  • GEOG 474 — Geography and the Law
  • GEOG 476 — Women and the City
  • GEOG 477 — Advanced Urban Geography
  • GEOG 478 — Social Justice and the City
  • GEOG 479 — Diversity and Segregation in Cities
  • GEOG 490 — Field Research: The Seattle Region

2. Environment, Economy and Sustainability (EES)

The courses in this track study the reciprocal and often contradictory forces of economic activity, environmental policy, and sustainability.  Using such key geographic concepts as scale, place and location, these courses analyze relations between such complex processes as: land use, labor markets, corporate location, international trade, energy policy & consumption, environmental regulatory policy, resource use and food systems.

  • GEOG 123 — Introduction to Globalization
  • GEOG 180 — Introduction To Global Health
  • GEOG 203 — Geographies of Migration
  • GEOG 205 — Our Global Environment
  • GEOG 207 — Economic Geography
  • GEOG 208 — Geography of the World Economy: Regional Fortunes and the Rise of Global Markets
  • GEOG 236 — Development and Challenge in Greater China
  • GEOG 270 — Environment and Development
  • GEOG 271 — Geography of Food and Eating
  • GEOG 272 — Geographies of Environmental Justice
  • GEOG 276 — Introduction to Political Geography
  • GEOG 280 — Introduction to the Geography of Health and Health Care
  • GEOG 301 — Cultural Geography
  • GEOG 302 — The Pacific Northwest
  • GEOG 335 — The Developing World
  • GEOG 342 — Geography of Inequality
  • GEOG 360 — Principles of GIS Mapping
  • GEOG 370 — Environmental Conservation
  • GEOG 371 — World Hunger and Resource Development
  • GEOG 373 — Food and Community: Cultural Practices in the Hispanic World
  • GEOG 380 — Geographic Patterns of Health
  • GEOG 381 — Mapping Health
  • GEOG 403 — Contemporary European Migration
  • GEOG 435 — Industrialization and Urbanization of China
  • GEOG 430 — Contemporary Development Issues in Latin America
  • GEOG 436 — South Asian Development
  • GEOG 439 — Gender, Race and the Geography of Employment
  • GEOG 440 — Regional Analysis
  • GEOG 445 — Geography of Housing
  • GEOG 455 --- Genealogical Geographies
  • GEOG 462 — Coastal GIS
  • GEOG 464 — GIS-Based Decision Support
  • GEOG 467 — Law, Justice and the Environment
  • GEOG 472 — Race, Nature, and Power
  • GEOG 473 — Geographies of Energy and Sustainability
  • GEOG 474 — Geography & the Law
  • GEOG 477 — Advanced Urban Geography
  • GEOG 480 — Environmental Geography, Climate, and Health
  • GEOG 490 — Field Research: The Seattle Region

3. Globalization, Health and Development (GHD)

How does globalization shape life and death around the planet? How can development initiatives address global health disparities? Providing geographical answers to such questions, this track traces the extraordinarily uneven effects of global trade, global finance, and market-led development on food systems, health and the geography of impoverishment.  By putting global health challenges in a global socio-economic context, the track simultaneously highlights how social movements and social organizing can make a difference, including differences in formal policies effecting human well-being directly as well as innovations in the ethics of care. Courses in the track provide frequent opportunities for service learning as part of the goal of helping students engage with real world challenges.   All our classes also approach these themes through a geographical lens: charting global-local relations and the links between nature, society and political-economy in particular places. This geographical approach in turn enables us to explore how nutrition, health, and development are intertwined with other processes ranging from the personal experiences of migrant farmworkers, to urban and regional redevelopment, to global financial reforms.  Specific questions that frame our classes include: What are the links between life and debt (GEOG 123)? How have sixty years of development increased in-country inequality (Geog 230)?  How do global disease etiologies reflect other global interconnections (Geog 280)? How does agricultural modernization relate to hunger (Geog 371)? And  what are the implications for food security, health security and developmental security when they are re-framed in terms of geopolitics and the global security challenges of international relations (Geog 375)?

  • GEOG 123 — Introduction to Globalization
  • GEOG 180 --- Intro To  Global Health
  • GEOG 200 ---  Intro to Human Geography
  • GEOG 208 — Geography of the World Economy: Regional Fortunes and the Rise of Global Markets
  • GEOG 230 — Urbanization and Development: Geographies of Global Inequality
  • GEOG 236 — Geography of Greater China
  • GEOG 258 — Digital Geographies
  • GEOG 270 — Geographies of International Development & The Environment
  • GEOG 271 — Geography of Food and Eating
  • GEOG 276 — Introduction to Political Geography
  • GEOG 277 — Geography of Cities
  • GEOG 280 — Introduction to the Geography of Health and Health Care
  • GEOG 295 — Introduction to Migration (Autumn 2015 only)
  • GEOG 331 — Poverty, Care and Responsibility
  • GEOG 332 --- Black Feminist Geographies
  • GEOG 335 — The Developing World
  • GEOG 337 --- Migration and Development in China
  • GEOG 342 — Geography of Inequality
  • GEOG 360 — Principles of GIS Mapping
  • GEOG 370 — Environmental Conservation
  • GEOG 371 — World Hunger and Resource Development
  • GEOG 373 — Food and Community: Cultural Practices in the Hispanic World
  • GEOG 375 — Geopolitics
  • GEOG 380 — Geographical Patterns of Health and Disease
  • GEOG 381 — Mapping Health
  • GEOG 430 — Contemporary Development Issues in Latin America
  • GEOG 431 — Geography and Gender
  • GEOG 432 — Geography of Power and Privilege
  • GEOG 435 — Industrialization and Urbanization of China
  • GEOG 436 — South Asian Development
  • GEOG 438 — Cities of East Asia
  • GEOG 455 --- Genealogical Geographies
  • GEOG 467 — Law, Justice and the Environment
  • GEOG 472 — Race, Nature, and Power
  • GEOG 473 — Geographies of Energy and Sustainability
  • GEOG 474 — Geography & The Law
  • GEOG 480 — Environmental Geography, Climate, and Health
  • GEOG 490 — Field Research: The Seattle Region

4. GIS, Mapping and Society (GMS)

In the courses that comprise the GIS, Mapping and Society track, students learn to use GIS, web-based geospatial applications, and database management systems for problem solving in relation to a diverse range of societal concerns, such as those within the other Geography tracks. Students learn a range of analytical and critical methods for cartographic representation, spatial analysis, geovisualization, and database management.  Further, students learn about the politics, ethics and values of mapping and geospatial technologies, and integrate their social and technical skills to undertake projects with research partners in the region.

  • GEOG 245 — Geodemographics: Population, Diversity, and Place
  • GEOG 258 — Digital Geographies
  • GEOG 276 — Intro to Political Geography
  • GEOG 317 --- Geographic Information and Spatial Analysis
  • GEOG 327 --- Critical Remote Sensing
  • GEOG 328 --- Web-Based Geographic Information Systems
  • GEOG 360 — Principles of GIS Mapping
  • GEOG 375 — Geopolitics
  • GEOG 381 — Mapping Health
  • GEOG 445 — Geography of Housing
  • GEOG 450 --- Visualizing Seattle
  • GEOG 455 --- Genealogical Geographies
  • GEOG 458 — Advanced Digital Geographies
  • GEOG 461 — Urban Geographic Information Systems
  • GEOG 462 — Coastal GIS
  • GEOG 464 — GIS-Based Decision Support
  • GEOG 465 — GIS Databases and Programming
  • GEOG 469 — GIS Workshop
  • GEOG 482 — GIS Data Management

 

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