The R.H. Mallory Center for Community Geography at The University of New Mexico hosts Geoff Buckley, a professor at Ohio University and the Ohio Center for Ecology and Evolutionary Studies, for a series of events Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 9-10.

Geoff Buckley
Professor Geoff Buckley, Ohio University and the Ohio Center for Ecology and Evolutionary Studies

“We chose Geoff because his research in historical geography deals with so many interesting connections between community activism, urban development, public memory, and landscape change. We are all looking forward to his visit,” said Geography and Environmental Studies professor and center director Maria Lane. 

Buckley’s research interests include environmental history and historical geography; environmental justice; mining landscapes; public lands, especially national parks; urban environments; and urban sustainability. He is the author of five books including The American Environment Revisited: Environmental Historical Geographies of the United States and North American Odyssey: Historical Geographies for the 21st Century, which he co-edited.

A public colloquium on community geography, Rethinking Fountainbridge: Honoring the Past and Greening the Future in an Edinburgh Neighborhood, will be held Tuesday, Nov. 9, at 5:30 p.m. in Bandelier East Room 105. 

The colloquium will focus on neighborhood activism in Edinburgh. Formed in 2011, the Fountainbridge Canalside Initiative has been working with developers and other interested parties, to honor the area’s industrial past, and build a more just, livable, and sustainable community.

This is an in-person event, with masks required for all attendees per UNM policy. Streaming is available via Zoom for those who cannot attend in person. 

A critical conversation and Q&A on urban geography with Natasha Howard, assistant professor in Geography and Environmental Studies with a joint appointment in Africana Studies at UNM, and GES students in The City class will be held Wednesday, Nov. 10, from 4 to 5 p.m. at Dane Smith Hall, Room 136.

The discussion will center on Buckley’s research, It’s Not Easy Going Green: Obstacles to Tree-Planting Programs in East Baltimore, on resistance to a tree-planting program in Baltimore. In 2006, government officials in Baltimore announced plans to double the city’s tree canopy over the next 30 years. While the effort has already produced positive results, many parts of the city still lack trees. Buckley and his colleagues considered whether two neighborhoods in East Baltimore were suitable locations for tree planting. Their research showed that while there is enough plantable space in these two neighborhoods to increase tree canopy, from approximately 6 percent to over 16 percent, residents are not yet ready to fully embrace an aggressive tree planting program.

This is an in-person event, with masks required for all attendees as per UNM policy. 

Parking is available on campus in the Cornell Parking Structure, Yale Parking Structure, or at pay stations. Dane Smith Hall is northwest of the Duck Pond.

An informal social hour will be held Wednesday, Nov. 10, at 5:30 p.m. at Bosque Brewing patio, Central and Girard that will give students and faculty a chance to meet and talk with Buckley informally. Food and drinks are available for purchase. 

The UNM Center for Community Geography supports community-engaged research and learning in human-environment dynamics. It engages directly with community groups and partners in work ranging from environmental change, natural resource conservation, and water management, to cultural preservation, human health, and community planning. The Center bolsters UNM’s commitment to community engagement by providing direct support for learners, researchers, and community partners who work specifically on human-environment issues.

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