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Geography prepares students to explore and understand cultural, bio‐physical, and geospatial environments, and their interactions and transformations, thereby empowering our students to shape a just and sustainable world.
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Department News

We're pleased to recognize our 2022 departmental award winners:

Outstanding Senior Geographer: Elizabeth Halasz

Exemplary Geography Research Award: Bob Chia Balmaceda

Exemplary Service Award: Claire King

Outstanding Service to the Spatial Analysis Lab: Eliza Herrenkohl

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University of Richmond Geography Professor Stephanie Spera Awarded NASA Grant For Research in Brazil’s Cerrado Frontier
Stephanie Spera, an assistant professor in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Sustainability at the University of Richmond, has received grant support from NASA for research focusing on the Cerrado frontier, a vast ecoregion of tropical savanna in eastern Brazil. 
Sarah Murtaugh, '23
Senior geography and global studies major creates maps for community empowerment.
University of Richmond Geography and the Environment Professor Stephanie Spera Selected as Voices for Science Fellow
Geography and the environment professor Stephanie Spera has been selected as one of 40 scientists to participate in the 2022 Voices for Science cohort.
University of Richmond Announces New Academic Opportunities For 2022-23 Academic Year
Changes include launching the Africana Studies program and adding minors in sustainability and data science and statistics.   
Three University of Richmond Students Awarded Critical Language Scholarships to Study Foreign Languages This Summer
Three University of Richmond students have been awarded U.S. Department of State Critical Language Scholarships to study foreign languages this summer.
UR Geography and the Environment Professor Stephanie Spera Receives VFIC Excellence in Instructional Technology Award
Geography and the environment professor Stephanie Spera received the H. Hiter Harris III Award for Excellence in Instructional Technology from the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges.
University of Richmond Geography Faculty and Students Participate in Statewide Heat Watch Project
The University of Richmond was among more than a dozen colleges and universities to take to the streets across Virginia July 15 as part of the largest heat-mapping study of its kind ever conducted.
University of Richmond Professor Todd Lookingbill Receives State Council of Higher Education Outstanding Faculty Award
Todd Lookingbill, University of Richmond associate professor of geography, environmental studies, and biology, has been named an Outstanding Faculty Award recipient by the State Council of Higher Education.
Rong Bao, '21
Science leadership scholar researches reforestation efforts in Asia and heat and air pollution in Richmond
University of Richmond Department of Geography Creates Open Access COVID-19 Digital Dashboard Using GIS Technology
The UR Department of Geography has used GIS (geographic information system) technology to create a COVID-19 dashboard.
University of Richmond Geography Professors Awarded $700K Grant From NASA to Study Environmental Changes in the Amazon
Stephanie Spera, assistant professor of geography at the University of Richmond, has been awarded more than $700,000 from NASA for a three-year project to study ecosystem changes in the Amazon rainforest.
Five UR Students Join Global Network of Campus Change Makers
Five University of Richmond students have been named University Innovation Fellows.
University of Richmond Faculty Experts Discuss Climate Change
University of Richmond faculty and staff experts are available to discuss climate change.
Peru-Brazil 2019 GTASO GIS Workshop
The week-long workshop was held between July 1 to July 5, 2019 and the team produced a suite of thematic maps.
University of Richmond Professor Stephanie Spera Awarded Fellowship for Fall Foliage Research in Acadia National Park
Stephanie Spera, an assistant professor in the University of Richmond Department of Geography and the Environment, has been awarded a fellowship to conduct research in Acadia National Park in Maine.

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Faculty and Staff Highlights

  • Spera Awarded
    Spera Awarded

    Stephanie Spera, assistant professor of geography, environment, and sustainability, was awarded a NASA Grant for research in Brazil’s Cerrado Frontier. Read more.
  • Spera Selected
    Spera Selected

    Stephanie Spera, assistant professor of geography, environment, and sustainability, was selected as one of 40 scientists to participate in the 2022 Voices for Science cohort. Read more.
  • Lookingbill Published
    Lookingbill Published

    Todd Lookingbill, associate professor of geography, environmental studies, and biology, published an article, "Connectivity in the Urban Landscape (2015–2020): Who? Where? What? When? Why? and How?" in Current Landscape Ecology Reports.
  • Spera Awarded
    Spera Awarded

    Stephanie Spera, assistant professor of geography and the environment, received the Excellence in Instructional Technology Award from the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges. Read more.
  • Lookingbill Publishes Chapter on Riverscapes
    Lookingbill Publishes Chapter on Riverscapes

    Todd Lookingbill, associate professor of geography, environmental studies, and biology, published a chapter on riverscapes in The Routledge Handbook of Landscape Ecology.
  • Spera Published
    Spera Published

    Stephanie Spera, assistant professor of geography and the environment, published an article on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report — "What You Need to Know and Why it's a Big Deal" in the The Conversation.
  • Lookingbill Awarded
    Lookingbill Awarded

    Todd Lookingbill, associate professor of geography, environmental studies, and biology, has been named an Outstanding Faculty Award recipient by the State Council of Higher Education. Read more.
  • Lookingbill Published
    Lookingbill Published

    Todd Lookingbill, associate professor of geography and the environment, published “Assessing Inequitable Urban Heat Islands and Air Pollution Disparities with Low-Cost Sensors in Richmond, Virginia” in Sustainability.
  • Spera Awarded
    Spera Awarded

    Stephanie Spera, assistant professor of geography, has been awarded $705,261 from The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for a three year project, Quantifying the Effects of Forest Cover Changes on Provisioning and Regulating Ecosystem Services in the Southwestern Amazon.
  • Spera Wins Climate Change Fellowship
    Spera Wins Climate Change Fellowship
    Dr. Stephanie Spera has been awarded the Second Century Stewardship Research Fellowship at Acadia National Park for Climate Change, Fall Foliage and Leaf-Peepers: Effects of Precipitation and Temperature on Senescence and Visitation in Acadia National Park. 

Scholarship Repository Readership

The University of Richmond's Scholarship Repository shares faculty publications with a world-wide audience. The map below shows where articles from geography faculty are being read around the globe.

GIS Day 2018
Global Environment Speaker Series
GIS Day
Applied Courses

Resources

Library Research Guide

Environmental Studies Program

Global Environment Speaker Series

Global Studies Program

Office of Sustainability

Contact Us

Mailing address:
Department of Geography and the Environment
Carole Weinstein International Center
211 Richmond Way
University of Richmond, Virginia  23173

Phone: (804) 289-8265
Fax: (804) 484-1577

Spatial Analysis Laboratory: (804) 484-1518

Department Chair:  Todd Lookingbill
Major Advisors: Mary Finley-Brook, Todd Lookingbill, David Salisbury and Stephanie Spera
Academic Administrative Specialist: Nancy Propst

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