Today in Geography

Today, we welcomed Angelique Willis to the show. Angelique is a dual-major PhD student in the MSU Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences and the Environmental Science and Policy Program. Angelique is strongly committed to leveraging her expertise in Geography, Public Health, Epidemiology, Environmental Health, and GIS to enhance drinking water quality and safeguard human health. Her work focuses on the unique drinking water challenges faced by low-income communities and communities of color, where systemic inequities often exacerbate these issues. Through rigorous research and informed policy advocacy, Angelique aims to uncover and address these disparities, driving transformative changes. Her approach involves mapping drinking water quality issues and conducting studies to assess health impacts. Ultimately, she strives to create sustainable solutions that resonate both locally and nationally, advancing environmental justice and improving public health outcomes.Angelique also discussed the importance of National Drinking Water Week, which takes place the first week of May. In 1988, the American Water Works Association (AWWA) brought Drinking Water Week to the attention of the U.S. government and formed a coalition along with the League of Women Voters, the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Rep. Robert Roe and Sen. Dennis DeConcini subsequently sponsored a resolution to name the first week of May as Drinking Water Week, and the week-long observance was declared in a joint congressional resolution signed by then-President Ronald Reagan. Recognizing Drinking Water Week is an easy way to educate the public, connect with the community, and promote employee morale. Too often, water utilities only receive negative publicity — a main break in the middle of rush hour or increasing rates. Recognizing Drinking Water Week provides an opportunity for positive communication.For more information about Angelique’s work, visit her LinkedIn page. To learn more about National Drinking Water Week, visit the American Water Works Association website. Our Sponsor: The MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate ProgramOur sponsor for this episode is the onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program at Michigan State University. Their online Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization Certificate aims to advance the geospatial tools & technology skill-set of professionals currently working in fields that use geospatial technologies. It is also an excellent opportunity for anyone looking to revamp their current career, earn continuing-education or teaching credits, or simply learn new and marketable skills.The online Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization Certificate consists of four (core) fully online courses that are each delivered in 7-week sessions. These core courses cover topics ranging from map design, interactive and temporal mapping, geovisualization, spatial data analytics, spatial statistics, geoprocessing, geospatial analysis, and much more. In addition to content-based modules, each course features a series of online labs designed to give students hands-on experience using geospatial technologies and improve technical competency.Ready to get started? Visit  ⁠ongeo.msu.edu to learn more.

Today, we welcomed ⁠Mehmet Eroğlu⁠, a recent graduate of the Ph.D. program at the ⁠Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences⁠ at Michigan State University.Mehmet is a human geographer whose research focuses on power struggles in the production of landscapes, particularly in relation to workers and working-class communities. His work seeks to understand how, to what extent, and under what structural constraints and opportunities workers exercise their agency in shaping their own geographies. While his broader research interests center on the intersections of labor, place, and power rather than specific regional contexts, his current research examines the struggles of informal coal miners in Turkey.Mehmet discussed International Workers’ Day, a celebration of labourers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labour movement and occurs every year on May 1st. To celebrate this important holiday, Mehmet encourages listeners to watch Bread and Roses, a film directed by Kenneth Loach, starring Pilar Padilla, Adrien Brody and Elpidia Carrillo.Our sponsor for this episode is the MSU Geography Undergraduate Program. At MSU Geography, you won’t just study the world — you’ll help shape it. Ready to map your future? Visit geo.msu.edu and talk with an academic advisor today.

Today, we welcomed Leo Baldiga to the show. Leo is a dual-major PhD student in the MSU Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences and the Environmental Science and Policy Program. His research interests include the areas of Agrarian Change, Natural Resource Rights, Commons Politics, Development, and Demographic and Cultural Shifts in Southeast Asia. Leo graduated with a BA in Comparative Cultures and Politics from MSU's James Madison College in 2020 and was a Fulbright Research Fellow at Chiang Mai University in 2021, working with local community organizations on a range of topics related to land rights, healthcare access, and statelessness. In 2022-23 he worked with the Mekong School Institute of Local Knowledge on the Mekong Water Protectors citizen science program, Mekong Youth Program, Mekong Safeguard Program, and the Mekong School Digital Library. Throughout this time, he has been working on the Mekong Culture WELL (Water, Ecologies, Land, and Livelihoods) grant through the James Madison College on a household survey, ecocultural mapping, and various other projects.Leo also discussed the importance of the founding of Earth Day on April 22, 1970. Inspired by the anti-war "teach-ins" of the 1960s, Senator Gaylord Nelson (D-WI) proposed a national teach-in on the environment after witnessing the environmental damage caused by the 1969 Santa Barbara, California oil spill. Denis Hayes, a young activist, was hired to organize the first national event. The date of April 22 was chosen to fall between spring break and final exams at most colleges and universities to maximize student participation. Today, more than a billion people in nearly 200 countries celebrate Earth Day, making it the largest secular, civic-minded day of action in the world.If you would like to learn more about Leo’s research on agricultural drone use, please visit “Agricultural drones are taking off globally, saving farmers time and money,” an article Leo wrote for The Conversation with co-author Ben Belton. If you would like to learn more about Earth Day, visit https://www.epa.gov/earthday. Our Sponsor: The MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate ProgramOur sponsor for this episode is the onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program at Michigan State University. Their online Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization Certificate aims to advance the geospatial tools & technology skill-set of professionals currently working in fields that use geospatial technologies. It is also an excellent opportunity for anyone looking to revamp their current career, earn continuing-education or teaching credits, or simply learn new and marketable skills.The online Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization Certificate consists of four (core) fully online courses that are each delivered in 7-week sessions. These core courses cover topics ranging from map design, interactive and temporal mapping, geovisualization, spatial data analytics, spatial statistics, geoprocessing, geospatial analysis, and much more. In addition to content-based modules, each course features a series of online labs designed to give students hands-on experience using geospatial technologies and improve technical competency.Ready to get started? Visit  ⁠ongeo.msu.edu to learn more.

Today, we welcomed Alanna Post to the show. Alanna is a PhD student in the MSU Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences with a dual major in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior. She received her B.S. in Ecology and Environmental Biology from the Biology department at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and her M.S. in Biology from Sonoma State University (Rohnert Park, CA). She is interested in forest ecology, disturbance ecology, and remote sensing. Alanna's research focuses on understanding post-fire forest recovery dynamics through the lens of forest structure.Alanna discussed her research as well as the influence she experienced from reading A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold. On April 14, 1948, Oxford University Press informed Leopold that it wished to publish his manuscript. One week later, Leopold suffered a fatal heart attack while fighting a grass fire that had escaped from a neighbor’s farm near the shack. In the months that followed, Leopold’s son, Luna, took the lead in getting the manuscript into print.If you would like to learn more about Alanna’s research, please visit the Ecological Remote Sensing and Modeling Lab at https://www.ersamlab.com/. If you would like to learn more about Aldo Leopold and A Sand County Almanac, visit https://www.aldoleopold.org/. Our sponsor for this episode is the Undergraduate Degree Program for the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Choose from Bachelor of Science concentrations in Earth Observation & Geospatial Analytics, Physical Environment & Climate, or Human-Environment & Economic Geography. Or tailor your path through human, physical, and regional geography courses with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Ready to map your future? Visit  geo.msu.edu to talk with an academic advisor today.

Today, we welcomed Dr. Sue Grady, a professor in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Dr. Grady is a health and medical geographer. Her research focuses on women’s health, specifically maternal and infant health. She is interested in understanding how local environments in which women live impact their health (i.e., increase the opportunity for infectious disease transmission and/or contribute to chronic diseases), which in turn, impair their pregnancies, leading to adverse maternal and infant outcomes. Most of her current research focuses on reducing maternal and infant mortality. She is studying perinatal regionalization in Michigan to improve our understanding of inpatient hospital referral patterns of high-risk African American mothers and infants. Dr. Grady utilizes geographic information systems (GIS) and spatial epidemiological methods, including multilevel modeling, to disentangle these complexities. The students she mentors are interested in a variety of health and medical geography topics.Dr. Grady discussed her research as well as the official declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020. If you would like to learn more about Dr. Grady’s research, please visit https://geo.msu.edu/directory/grady-sue.html or her Google Scholar page at https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=IdbEU9oAAAAJ&hl=en.If you would like to learn more about the American Association of Geographers Health and Medical Geography Specialty group, visit ⁠ https://www.aag.org/groups/health-and-medical-geography/.  Our sponsor for this episode is the MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program. If you are looking to revamp your current career, earn continuing-education credits, or simply learn new and marketable geospatial skills, visit today to learn how to earn a professional certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) or Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization. Learn more at https://ongeo.msu.edu/. 

Today we welcomed Kyla Dahlin an associate professor in the ⁠Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Dr. Dahlin is also a member of AgBio Research, the Department of Plant Biology, the Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior (EEB) program, and the Environmental Science and Policy Program (ESPP) at MSU. Dr. Dahlin’s research aims to better understand and quantify ecosystem processes and disturbance responses through the application of emerging technologies, including air- and space-borne remote sensing, spatial statistics, and process-based modeling. She is currently interested in semi-arid forest/grassland transition zones, where vegetation patterns are readily observable but poorly understood. Dr. Dahlin approaches questions by integrating observational data, modeling, and focused field experiments to both refine our understanding of ecosystem function and to improve our ability to predict how ecosystems and the climate will change in the future.Dr. Dahlin discussed her research as well as the failed launch on February 24, 2009, of the first Orbiting Carbon Observatory. If you would like to learn more about Dr. Dahlin’s research, please visit the Ecological Remote Sensing and Modeling Lab at ersamlab.com. To learn more about the work of the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), check out the NEON Science YouTube channel. If you’d like to get involved with some fun and interesting citizen science efforts, download iNaturalist and Seek. 

Today, we welcomed Katie Brown, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Katie is a health geographer interested in how the places we interact with impact our health. While pursuing her PhD, her work has focused on how urban transformations may affect residents' mental health in the city of Detroit, Michigan, which is presently undergoing significant investment and transformation. For her dissertation, she used both qualitative and quantitative measures to identify the mediating factors between neighborhood change and mental health outcomes. Additionally, her work aims to recognize resources that may protect residents' mental health in the face of neighborhood change. Based on this case, she hopes to provide insights that can inform policy and planning decisions in other urban environments facing similar transformations. Beyond the academic frontier, Katie is committed to making a meaningful impact on the lives of those affected by urban transformations and promoting health equity in urban communities.Katie discussed her research as well as the founding of the American Association of Geographers on December 29, 1904, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  If you would like to learn more about Katie’s research, please visit the Space, Health, And Community (SHAC) Lab at https://www.spacehealthandcommunitylab.org/If you would like to learn more about the American Association of Geographers, visit https://www.aag.org. Our sponsor for this episode is the MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program. If you are looking to revamp your current career, earn continuing-education credits, or simply learn new and marketable geospatial skills, visit today to learn how to earn a professional certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) or Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization. Learn more at https://ongeo.msu.edu/. 

Today we welcome Sandhya Sharma, a dual-major Ph.D. candidate in the ⁠Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences⁠ and the Environmental Science and Policy Program at Michigan State University. She earned her master's degree in forestry from the Forest Research Institute in Dehradun, India, and her bachelor's degree in forestry from Kathmandu Forestry College in Nepal. Her research focuses on forest and disturbance ecology, particularly forest fire dynamics and their assessment using remote sensing. She is studying how plant water stress can predict burn severity in Nepal while developing methods to map forest fires and recurring disturbances, and estimate aboveground biomass loss by integrating remote sensing with field data.Sandhya discussed the 26th Anniversary of the launch of ArcGIS on December 27, 1999. ArcGIS is a comprehensive geospatial platform for professionals and organizations. It is the leading geographic information system (GIS) technology. Built by Esri, ArcGIS integrates and connects data through the context of geography.If you would like to learn more about Sandhya’s research, visit the ERSAM Lab website. Our sponsor for this episode in the MSU onGEO on-demand course offering of Interpreting Wetlands & Deepwater Habitats from Aerial Imagery. This online professional course teaches participants how to successfully interpret and classify wetlands from aerial imagery and high-resolution satellite imagery. While there are many ways to extract wetland features from imagery, all of them require the user to know how to interpret them first. For instance, automated classification requires training sites, which are features with a known classification. To learn more and register today, visit https://ongeo.msu.edu/ondemand/index.html.

Today we welcomed Stephen Przybylinski, a professor of urban and political geography in the ⁠Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Dr. Przybylinski is broadly interested in the ways in which liberal democracies both enable injustices and how such political systems mediate responses to injustices within their frameworks. Before arriving at MSU, he had a two-year post-doctoral position at Uppsala University, where he was a researcher on the JustNorth project, a Horizon 2020 project examining the ethical implications of Arctic development. Dr. Przybylinski holds a Ph.D. in geography from Syracuse University, an MA in geography from Portland State University, and a BA in urban studies and geography from the University of Minnesota.Dr. Przybylinski discussed his research as well as National Homeless Persons Memorial Day, an event on or near the winter solstice (December 21st) coordinated by national organizations, including the National Coalition for the Homeless, the National Health Care for the Homeless Council, and the National Consumer Advisory Board, which remembers those who died homeless in the past year.If you would like to learn more about Dr. Przybylinski’s research, please see his book The Injustice of Property: Homeless Encampments and the Limits of Liberalism, available from University of Georgia Press. Our sponsor for this episode is the Undergraduate Degree Program for the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Choose from Bachelor of Science concentrations in Earth Observation & Geospatial Analytics, Physical Environment & Climate, or Human-Environment & Economic Geography. Or tailor your path through human, physical, and regional geography courses with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Ready to map your future? Visit geo.msu.edu and talk with an academic advisor today.Note: This episode was recorded on November 14, 2025. 

In this episode, we welcome Angie Sanchez, a PhD student in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Angie’s research focuses on health and medical geography with an emphasis on Indigenous communities and access to breastfeeding support resources and other health disparities.We also discuss the evolution of Native American Heritage Month, the observance during November to celebrate the history, culture, and contributions of American Indian and Alaska Native peoples. The month-long recognition, established in 1990, is an opportunity to learn about indigenous communities, their traditions, and the challenges they face.If you would like to learn more about Angie’s work and research, visit the Noon Project (https://nooniproject.com/) and the Sacred Waters Collective (https://sacredwaterscollective.co/). You can email Angie at [email protected] and the Sacred Waters Collective at [email protected] sponsor for this episode is the MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program. If you are looking to revamp your current career, earn continuing-education credits, or simply learn new and marketable geospatial skills, visit today to learn how to earn a professional certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) or Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization. Learn more at https://ongeo.msu.edu/.

This week in Today in Geography, host Nathan Moore sits down with Alan Arbogast, professor and geomorphologist in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. He is best known for his research on the geomorphic history of coastal sand dunes along Lake Michigan. This work has demonstrated that the dunes are much younger than originally thought and that they have grown episodically through time. Activation cycles are likely related to lake level fluctuations and, perhaps, drought episodes. Alan has also conducted research on dune fields within the interior of Michigan, as well as the evolution of the upper Muskegon River valley. Stay tuned for the publication of his forthcoming book on Great Lakes coastal sand dunes. Moore and Arbogast also discuss Geography Awareness Week, an annual public awareness program, typically celebrated in the third week of November, that encourages people to learn about the significance of place and how we impact and are impacted by our environment. It was established by presidential proclamation more than 35 years ago to promote geographical understanding through a variety of events, activities, and outreach programs. Our sponsor for this episode is the Undergraduate Program in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at MSU. To learn more about exciting degree options, visit geo.msu.edu/undergraduate.

In this episode, we welcome Ethan Theuerkauf, a coastal geomorphologist in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Dr. Theuerkauf’s research focuses on how and why coastal landscapes, such as beaches, barrier islands, and wetlands, change across timescales ranging from storms to millennia.We also discuss the 50th anniversary of the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, a cargo ship that sank in Lake Superior during a violent storm on November 10, 1975, near Whitefish Point, Michigan. The wreck resulted in the deaths of all 29 crew members on board. If you would like to learn more about the research that Dr. Theuerkauf and his team conduct in the Great Lakes, visit his lab website at www.coastalgeomorphology.com. Our sponsor for this episode is the MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program. If you are looking to revamp your current career, earn continuing-education credits, or simply learn new and marketable geospatial skills, visit  ⁠ongeo.msu.edu⁠ today to learn how to earn a professionalcertificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) or Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization. 

Today we welcome Mehmet Eroğlu, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Mehmet is a human geographer with a research focus on power struggles in the production of landscapes, particularly in relation to workers and working-class communities. His work seeks to understand how, to what extent, and under what structural constraints and opportunities workers exercise their agency in shaping their own geographies. While his broader research interests center on the intersections of labor, place, and power rather than specific regional contexts, his current research examines the struggles of informal coal miners in Turkey.Mehmet discussed the work of David Harvey, a British-American academic best known for Marxist analyses that focus on urban geography as well as the economy more broadly. Harvey is a Distinguished Professor of anthropology and geography at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, and the Director of Research at the Center for Place, Culture and Politics, and the author of numerous books. He has been teaching Karl Marx’s Capital for over 50 years. Harvey was born on October 31, 1935, and on this episode we celebrate his 90th birthday. If you would like to learn more about David Harvey’s research, Mehmet suggests reading Spaces of Capital: Towards a Critical Geography.Our sponsor for this episode is the MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program. If you are looking to revamp your current career, earn continuing-education credits, or simply learn new and marketable geospatial skills, visit ongeo.msu.edu today to learn how to earn a professional certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) or Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization.

Hello and welcome to Today in Geography—a podcast produced by the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University. Each episode, we talk with members of our community about their research and interests, and then we spend some time spotlighting events and celebrations that have shaped the field of geography. Join host Nathan Moore, an Associate Professor in the Department, for an engaging exploration of people, places, and stories that shape our world.To learn more about the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University, visit geo.msu.edu.