Brigadier General Rodgers Scholarship for Geography Majors
As a result of a generous fund established by Mrs. Rodgers in honor of her late husband Brigadier General William M. Rodgers, a former instructor in our department, the Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences awards up to two scholarships of up to $1,000 each academic year for geography majors. Please visit the Brigadier General Rodgers Scholarship Web site for further information. 2013 APPLICATIONS DUE MARCH 8, 2013!! SEE LINK ABOVE FOR MORE DETAILS!!
Congratulations to the 2013 Recipients!
Claire Brewer, Susanna Diller, Thomas Homer, Dylan Lewan, Caitlin Reusch, and Danielle Shea!!
GES Department Hosts the 2011 Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers Great Plains/Rocky Mountain Division
We were excited to welcome over 180 people from across the region to a meeting at the University of Colorado Denver, October 6-8, 2011! We had scheduled field trips, an opening reception, an opening address by AAG past-president Dr. Carol Harden, a keynote address by AAG current preseident Dr. Audrey L. Kobayashi, paper and poster presentations, the Geography Bowl, and student paper and poster competitions. Please visit the
GP/RM AAG Regional Website for more information on the conference and regional activities.
Dr. Gregory Simon Initiates a Collaborative Research Project with Stanford University
A team of student researchers from CU-Denver and Stanford collaborated with Dr. Simon in the Spatial History Lab at Stanford University during much of the summer. This ongoing project uses an innovative blend of historical and spatial data/methodologies to underscore factors that give rise to urban wildfire vulnerability. A review of this project can be found on the following website:
Spatial History Project
GES Student Group Wins Outstanding Student Organization Award
The Geography and Environmental Sciences/GIS Club (aka EDGE) has been recognized by the University for its dedication, commitment, and outreach efforts. On 14 April 2011, EDGE won University of Colorado Denver’s Outstanding Student Organization award! This annual award represents the highest level of achievement for a student organization. Each semester EDGE sponsors a number of events ranging from engaging guest speakers and field trips to fun-filled geo trivia nights and volunteering. The Club is open to any student who has an interest in geography, environmental science, or GIS—graduate and undergraduate. If you are interested in participating, contact the President, Kaelin Groom (kaelin.groom@email.ucdenver.edu) or the Advisor, Casey Allen (casey.allen@ucdenver.edu). You can also keep up to date on events by registering with Orgsync (orgsync.com) or find us on Facebook (
GES Facebook Site)!
Dr. Simon Invited as Core Advisor to the United Nations Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves
In 2011, Dr Gregory Simon was invited to serve as Core Advisor to the United Nations Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves. As a member of the program's advisory committee Dr Simon has been influential in ensuring that the global initiative delivers new cookstoves to rural communities in a manner that is cost-effective, culturally appropriate and sustainable over time. A review of the United Nations program can be found here:
Clean Cook Stoves
Flash Graze at Five Fridges Farm
Amanda Weaver, one of the GES instructors, recently placed 300 cashmere goats on her 13-acre property in Wheat Ridge, CO. The land is designated a conservation easement and this is a natural process of weed removal that increases soil health (via natural fertilizer and hoof action) but also nourishes the ecosystem and readies the land for planting. Curious neighbors (as well as the police and reporters from the Wheat Ridge Transcript) were on hand to take in the sights of these goats and herding border collies mingling next to apartment buildings and residential homes.
The Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences is
happy to report that we now have a second operating weather station in the
network located at Amanda's Five Fridges Farm. As with our station here on top
of the North Classroom building, this station is hosted and part of the Weather
Underground network. The link to the detailed weather page is:
http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KCOWHEAT6
GES offers first domestic travel study course, Summer 2011
The Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences offered a 6 credit domestic travel study course for the summer semester of 2011 entitled “Geology and Geomorphology of the Great Basin, Sierra Nevada, and Coastal California”. The trip itinerary included stops in the San Rafael Swell of Utah, Valley of Fire State Park, Death Valley National Park, Devil’s Postpile National Monument, Yosemite National Park, and Point Reyes National Seashore. Based on the success of this first offering, future summer travel study courses are in the works, both domestically and internationally, including modern glacier studies in Alaska, plate tectonics of the Caribbean, and glacial geomorphology and geology of Montana.
Dr. Wee is Co-principal Investigator on Two NSF Grants that Provide Funding for Students Interested in Science Education
One opportunity provides fellowships to UCD graduate students in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) to improve their communication skills, act as STEM content resources in middle schools, and be positive role models in order to encourage students to pursue college degrees/careers in STEM. Graduate students on fellowships collaborate with middle school teachers in teams, and spend 10-15 hours each week immersed in a middle school classroom. In addition to learning about communication and K-12 educational processes, successful applicants also get an opportunity to travel to China to conduct STEM research and engage in STEM-related curriculum and instruction from a cross-cultural perspective. We are currently accepting 2012-2013 applications. For more information, please contact: Bryan.Wee@ucdenver.edu
The other opportunity provides scholarships to UCD undergraduate students in the sciences (Environmental Science, Physics, Chemistry and Biology) to obtain secondary science teaching licensure, that is, a state-approved license to teach middle and high school science. There is a dire need for high-quality science teachers in CO who are both passionate about their work and knowledgeable about science content. Each scholarship provides students with $12,000 per year (renewable for up to 2 years). Upon graduation and completion of the licensure program (granted through the UCD School of Education & Human Development), Noyce scholars are required to teach for a minimum of three years in Aurora Public Schools, which serve urban, low-income neighborhoods. For more information, please contact: Bryan.Wee@ucdenver.edu