Dear Friends of Geography,
Greetings from the Department of Geography! I write to wish you well and share recent news and highlights. This newsletter arrives on the heels of our annual convocation ceremony, celebrating over 165 new geographers graduating from the University of Washington this year. It was an unusually sunny and warm June day in Seattle, and a great opportunity to recognize the achievements of our B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. graduates as well as those of all students, alums, faculty and staff in our community. Just one week before, we hosted the annual Undergraduate Research Symposium that featured presentations and project submissions on a dizzying array of important topics, including: cyber-safety and security, disparities in health education in schools, solar energy distribution locally, preserving salmon habitat in the state, environmental justice and aquifer contamination, depravation, poverty and homelessness in Seattle, and representing “place” in GIS.
We appreciate our outgoing Undergraduate Program Director, Professor Bo Zhao, and Graduate Program Director, Professor Suzanne Withers, for their many years of service in these roles! Professor Mia Bennett recently released research with colleagues in Global Environmental Change Advances, titled “Bringing satellites down to Earth: Six steps to more ethical remote sensing.“ Professor Kam Wing Chan and Ph.D. Alum Dr. Xiaxia Yang (postdoc at King’s College, London) have recently published a commentary in Caixin Weekly, a major economics weekly in China. And Professor Erin McElroy authored an article in the International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, titled “Dis/Possessory Data Politics: From Tenant Screening to Anti-Eviction Organizing," which places tenant screening data grabbing practices in tension with the ongoing work of housing justice-based tool making. In March we received sad news about the loss of Professor Emeritus Richard L. Morrill.
This year, our graduate students have been funded to do research around the world, in Brazil, China, Ghana, Turkey, Vietnam, as well as the Arctic. Ph.D. Candidate Teddy Davenport's dissertation proposal, “Understanding the Political Potential of Care through Digital Spaces of Trans Belonging,” has been selected for the Feminist Geography Specialty Group’s (FGSG) Susan Hanson Dissertation Proposal Award. And in a recent profile, Ph.D. Candidate and recipient of the 2024 Howard Martin Medal for Extraordinary Achievement in Scholarship, Teaching & Service, Natalie Vaughan-Wynn shares details about publishing an article, helping to organize a symposium, presenting at a conference, and more.
As friends and alumni, you play a crucial role in supporting our community. We are so grateful for your gifts, your involvement in department events and programs, and your efforts to champion geography in your professional and personal communities. Please keep in touch as we are always happy to hear from you!
