On Feb. 5, the UVM Board of Trustees approved changes that will relocate the Geology program to a new Department of Geography and Geosciences, an interdisciplinary department that will house Geology and Geography together.

“UVM’s geology and related programs are well-known and highly respected,” said College of Arts and Sciences Dean William Falls. “The new department will ensure that we remain at the forefront of these fields for future generations.” 

The merger draws on the most current recommendations in these fields by integrating the studies of earth and social sciences. A recent report by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine concluded that a more integrated approach to these disciplines would enhance our collective ability to “keep pace with the rapid changes in the earth’s natural systems, the magnitude of human influences on them, the systems’ impacts on human and ecosystem sustainability and resilience, and the effectiveness of different pathways to address these challenges.”

In short, graduates of UVM’s new Department of Geography and Geosciences will be better prepared to enter the workforce and tackle the most vexing challenges to life on earth with an interdisciplinary academic experience under their belts.

The marriage of the two disciplines will leverage the strength of each, said Department Chair Beverley Wemple. “By merging the study of physical and social environments, we have an opportunity to deliver on a pedagogical promise to our students to provide the most relevant, applicable and intellectually engaging approach to understanding the world we live in.”

The new department will bring together 11 faculty from the Department of Geography and 5 from the Department of Geology. Core classes like Environmental Geology and programs like the Liberal Arts Earth & Environment Scholars program will continue. The departmental merger will also allow faculty to build upon existing strengths in landscape studies, tectonics and natural hazards, environmental change from local to global scales, the geohumanities, and human-environment interactions.

“This change will ensure a strong future for students interested in geology and geography here at UVM,” said Geology Chair Andrea Lini. “With our combined strengths and the diversity of scholarship among our faculty, students will have access to an extraordinary breadth of intellectual pursuits for years to come.”

Graduates of UVM’s Geography and Geology departments have long pursued careers around the globe and across a range of fields. Recent graduates have been employed with the Clinton Foundation working on global health initiatives, with the Teton Science School in environmental education, with local and state organizations like Association of Africans Living in Vermont, Vermont Agency of Transportation and Agency of Natural Resources, environmental consulting firms, planning agencies, and with geospatial technologies firms, like AppGeo, DroneBase, and Google Maps Platform.

“This new merged department is a more accurate reflection of the interdisciplinary work that our faculty are already championing,” said Falls. “It’s a logical next step for faculty and students who are pursuing answers to questions at the intersection of human and natural processes.”

Those questions include faculty research around human migration (Pablo Bose, Cheryl Morse), natural hazards and environmental contaminants (Nico Perdrial, Keith Klepeis, Laura Webb), implications of emerging technologies for environmental sensing (Andrew Schroth, Julia Perdrial, Beverley Wemple,Rebecca Diehl) and the communication of information or misinformation (Ingrid Nelson, Harlan Morehouse) to name just a few.

Research and instruction within the department draws on multiple methodological approaches, ranging from environmental reconstruction of historical and paleo climate (Shelly Rayback, Andrea Lini), to qualitative approaches for understanding human connections to place (Meghan Cope, others). Perspectives upon which we draw in our scholarship and teaching range from the ancient (M.D. Usher) to the post-modern (Ingrid Nelson, Harlan Morehouse).

The new department of Geography and Geosciences will formally launch in Fall 2022.