Global Change and Sustainability Center

Join us for the next seminar by Matthew Fry, March 26, 4pm, 295 FASB and online. https://www.environment.utah.edu/seminar-series/

Join us to hear from alum Jonathon Preece, who shows the relationship between climate change, atmospheric circulation patterns & accelerated melt of the Greenland Ice Sheet.

Er meh gerd! Look at this ermine!

This past September 2023, U of U Environmental Humanities graduate student Sydney Murray and Parks, Recreation and Tourism PhD student Hilary Lambert coordinated Camping in Color, a family camping program for Black youth and their families in and around the Salt Lake Valley area in partnership with various community partners and organizations including, but not limited to, Ashley Cleveland from Outdoor Auntie, U of U Sustainability Office, Curly Me SLC, and REI.

Come join us on December 6 at 7 p.m. to listen and celebrate this SCIF funded experience at the Alumni House. This program was designed to enhance and support a sense of belonging, connection and engagement in nature amongst the local Black community through environmental education and recreation. This program was designed gain insights on how to meaningfully and responsibly do diversity, equity and inclusion work in outdoor programming. Attending this U of U Campus Story Hour event will be an opportunity to learn about the research, the program, watch a short documentary film on it, and hear from some of the BIPOC leaders on the team and some of the camp families who participated to learn about their experience and how it made for a meaningful, culturally-responsive experience in/with nature.

Registration is required via the link! https://www.eventbrite.com/e/story-hour-camping-in-color-tickets-739461698847?aff=oddtdtcreator

Alt text: Graphic reads "Campus Story Hour | Join us to learn about and celebrate the inaugural Camping in Color overnight program! December 6th @ 7 P.M. University of Utah Alumni House"

Next seminar: Global energy transitions away from fossil fuel help mitigate climate change but may exacerbate energy inequity in places like Navajo Nation, generating a call to action for centering place-based knowledge to inform new energy paradigms.

Seminar Series | Global Change & Sustainability Center Seminars are at 4:00 pm on alternate Tuesdays in room 295 fasb. participants may also join via zoom. To receive notifications, join our email list. Seminars are open to all, and students who are enrolled in the Seminar course, SUST 6800, have additional opportunities to engage with the speakers. Vid...

In yet another innovation, John Lin and colleagues use Google Street View cars and modeling to detect hyper-local air pollution hotspots in the Salt Lake Valley. This new modeling approach uses modeled wind patterns and statistical analysis to trace pollution back to its source location to a scale previously missed by coarser scale monitoring projects that have traditionally characterized air quality averaged over an entire urban airshed.

‘Roving sentinels’ discover new air pollution sources - @theU Google Street View cars sampled air quality at a scale fine enough to capture variations within neighborhoods. A new atmospheric modeling method can identify pollution emission sources in many cities.

To build on the U’s current efforts supporting women from diverse backgrounds, especially Women of Color and q***r women, the university is embarking on an institutional transformation project using a $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation under its ADVANCE program, devoted to enhancing the role of women in the nation’s STEM workforce.

U looks to ADVANCE women faculty in STEM - @theU The U is embarking on an institutional transformation project using a $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation under its ADVANCE program.

September 12 seminar: Jason Robison, Professor of Law & Social Responsibility, University of Wyoming College of Law.
“Try Again”: Arizona v. Navajo Nation & the Colorado River

The U.S. Supreme Court’s Arizona v. Navajo Nation decision in June 2023 holds important implications for Colorado River management— particularly, federal-tribal relations over the river system—as new climate change-driven water management rules are negotiated by 2026.

Seminar Series | Global Change & Sustainability Center Seminars are at 4:00 pm on alternate Tuesdays in room 295 fasb. participants may also join via zoom. To receive notifications, join our email list. Seminars are open to all, and students who are enrolled in the Seminar course, SUST 6800, have additional opportunities to engage with the speakers. Vid...

Congratulations to GCSC Director Brenda Bowen, who will be taking on an additional leadership role as chair of the Department of Atmospheric Sciences.
Bowen says, "my goal is to build on the department’s leadership in advancing field stations and long-term field-based science, commitment to conducting and advancing community-based research with highly significant societal relevance, and dedication to training students for careers of the future.”
In addition to her geologic research and teaching, Brenda works to facilitate interdisciplinary sustainability research, practice, and academic programs that address critical issues related to understanding global change and creating sustainable solutions related to energy, resources, climate and equity. https://science.utah.edu/faculty/brenda-bowen-atmos/?fbclid=IwAR09R27Rsj9lP3sIMuaBTGcIGlDYFsJiUeGuSSVlvfhMlZNPiyPm9ub2H7Y

Geologist Brenda Bowen, to chair Department of Atmospheric Sciences | College of Science Brenda Bowen will take over as ATMOS chair

Researchers at the U are studying air quality in campus buildings to better understand where ventilation and filtration strategies could improve the health of occupants while maximizing energy efficiency. Kerry Kelly, Tabitha Benney, are Daniel Mendoza are faculty who were awarded SEED2SOIL grants. This program aims to leverage the world-class research capacity of the University of Utah to generate ideas and knowledge that can improve campus operations while also contributing broader knowledge and/or application.

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Derek Mallia, research assistant professor in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences and GCSC affiliate, is studying where these dust storms are having the greatest impact on residents.

Great Salt Lake is still blowing dangerous dust After historic snowfall over the winter, Utahns are breathing a sigh of relief about the Great Salt Lake. But they'd better not breathe too deeply — it still is blowing an immense amount of dangerous dust pollution along the Wasatch Front.

Proud of Maggie, a 2022-23 GCSC Fellow!

Maggie Scholle, a rising second year student, was part of the Spring 23 STEM Ambassador Program. STEMAP, started by Professor Nalini Nadkarni at the U of U, trains graduate students and faculty in public engagement with the goal of fostering open minded-exchange between members of the public and the scientific community. Maggie has a STEM background from undergrad, but she was the only humanities graduate student in the cohort. "I loved learning from everyone else in the cohort and became connected with all kinds of research on campus, just from discussing public engagement projects with my peers," Maggie said.

Maggie created two activities for the Magna Library's Kids Café, an after-school food distribution event held every weekday. She used geography as the scientific basis, but because children were her target audience, the workshops focused on emotional connection to place. She created a map collage activity and a sign-making activity, both of which had prompts for participants to reflect on their attachment to places that they care about and ways to make or keep those places inclusive. Maggie chose Magna Library has her engagement partner because of its proximity to Lee Kay Ponds--the focus of her thesis research.

"During the activity, I talked with kids about the favorite places they chose, and what those places meant to them," Maggie said. "A lot of participants used the Oquirrh Mountains, visible outside of the library window, as a landmark on their maps, and many used the library as their favorite place to make a sign for."

Maggie also led workshops on local environmental justice issues for youth-in-custody with STEMAP's partner, STEM Community Alliance Program (which is directed by EH alum Laura George!). "The desire for social science education in state prisons and need for justice-oriented education while we still have the carceral system we do made me admire the work Laura George is doing and reach out during a call for presenters," Maggie said.

Maggie will build on this work through her research at Lee Kay Ponds this summer and her fall fellowship with Digital Matters! Read the full spotlight on Maggie's work on our blog: https://environmental-humanities.utah.edu/blog/posts/2023/maggiescholle.php

Ruhan Nagra will discuss how advocates can work in partnership with affected communities to advance environmental justice (EJ). EJ advocates must think creatively, collaboratively, and across disciplines when designing and implementing advocacy strategies.
In person in 295 FASB, or register to attend online.

GCSC Seminar: Interdisciplinary Advocacy in Environmental Justice | Sustainability By Sydney Murray, Sustainability Office When it comes to practicing law, one often thinks of filing briefs, going to court, representing clients, and engaging in litigation. Dr. Ruhan Nagra, associate professor of law and founding director of the Environmental Justice Clinic at the University of Uta...

Save the date for our next seminar! Brian Eisenhauer, Director of the Office of Environmental Sustainability at Plymouth State University, will talk about best practices in promoting environmentally responsible behavior. Cosponsored with .

Events for March 2023 FASB room 295 To attend online, register: https://utah.zoom.us/j/98492126188?pwd=MFhaNkZsNGNrSi93K29nbXIzWkIyUT09 Abstract: Change to address the climate crisis in socially just ways requires integrated action at both collective and individual levels. The connections between beliefs, values and beha...

How do engineers and applied scientists who work in the mining and oil and gas industries understand their work in relation to broader calls for greater public accountability of the corporations employing them? How does the corporate context of these technoscientific professionals’ work shape how they imagine and practice sustainability?

GCSC Seminar: Competing Accountabilities amongst Scientists and engineers in the Mining, oil, and gas industries | Sustainability By Sydney Murray, Sustainability Office “Oftentimes we think about the mining, oil, and gas industries in black and white terms,” says Dr. Jessica M. Smith, professor in the Engineering, Design, and Society department at the Colorado School of Mines. “Especially when it comes to questions of s...

RESCHEDULED to March 16, 5-7pm, Union Ballroom. Environment & Sustainability Research Symposium celebrates interdisciplinary graduate student research from across campus!

Research Symposium | Global Change & Sustainability Center Held every spring, the annual Environment and Sustainability Research Symposium celebrates interdisciplinary student research related to the environment and/or sustainability. The symposium provides a great opportunity for graduate students working with GCSC faculty affiliates from across campus to....

Incredible lineup for Women’s Week!
Brenda Bowen, GCSC Director & Professor in Geology & Geophysics, will be a panelist on February 27 "Climate Change: Science and Art as Action".

Women’s Week - Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion Women’s Week is an annual, weeklong event focused on gendered issues and challenges faced in today’s socioeconomic and political climate, intersectionality, and cultural movements.

Every scientist is a communicator, so how can you maximize your impact? Read about the PMST program, science communication education at
, and a student who is communicating science through his art.

Careers in Science Communication - Career & Professional Development Center | Student Affairs By Meghan Dovick, Danielle Endres, and Doug Tolman This week, Peaks and Valleys speaks with two U of U faculty and one MFA candidate on…

West-siders: Join us and share your experiences with air quality Join us for a listening session on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023 at Mestizo Coffeehouse at 631 North Temple, Salt Lake City anytime from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. About 10 minutes of your time will help with the creation of a first-ever interactive air quality map of the Salt Lake Valley, featuring personal audio...

Watch for this new interdisciplinary public art & science project! Artist Wendy Wischer and Atmospheric Scientist John Lin use the unique communication of visual art to engage members of the public through a focus on common ground — blue skies and clean air — and connect them to air quality information collected as part of mobile platforms on the Utah Transit Authority—TRAX and electric buses.

Wendy Wischer’s ‘In Search of Blue Sky’ on UTA buses and TRAX - Department of Art & Art History Keep an eye out for Associate Professor Wendy Wischer's new public artwork on UTA buses and TRAX throughout the Salt Lake Valley for the month…

We are delighted to welcome Dr. Mitzi Montoya as the new U of U Provost! In previous roles, Dr. Montoya has been recognized for launching initiatives aimed at research, enrollment and creating more leadership opportunities for women.

Mitzi Montoya named senior vice president for academic affairs - @theU After an extensive national search, President Taylor Randall is pleased to announce the U’s new provost.

Here is Gannet Hallar!

Human-caused emissions create new cloud-forming particles - @theU An important link between the formation of new aerosol particles from emissions and their growth into particles that water can condense around shows how human activity may be changing cloud formation.

USU is conducting a survey on the future Great Salt Lake and they want your input!

Utahns Encouraged to Participate in USU Future of Great Salt Lake Survey Utah State University is conducting an open public survey of Utah residents about the future of Great Salt Lake. All residents in Utah are encouraged to participate.

Conservation and development are inherently in conflict, but there are points of contact between the two that provide hope for greater compatibility. Young argues that we need to return to the forefront of conservation, the inherent value of nature.

Join in to hear Alessandro Rigolon discuss inequitable access to parks and other green spaces in the U.S., and how this relates to environmental justice and public health issues.
Urban green spaces – including parks, tree canopy, green infrastructure, and other open spaces – have myriad benefits for human health, ecosystems, and economic development. Yet research shows that green space is inequitably distributed across racial/ethnic and socioeconomic lines in the U.S. and beyond. Dr. Rigolon will discuss green space equity, including its definition, causes, and relationships with health outcomes, and will present a framework for addressing green space inequities. This will show how different individuals and organizations across multiple disciplines can play a role in the struggle for green space equity. Rigolon will show examples of successful initiatives to advance green space equity via projects, policies, and systems change.

Dr. Alessandro Rigolon is an Assistant Professor in the Department of City and Metropolitan Planning at the University of Utah. He is interested in environmental justice issues related to urban green space and their impacts on health equity. His current work includes three main areas: policy determinants of inequities in park provision, drivers and resistance to gentrification fostered by new parks (i.e., “green gentrification”), and the public health impacts of urban green space on marginalized communities.
University of Utah College of Architecture + Planning, Sustainability Office

Image: In a town park, a neglected and broken little carousel with only three horses that remain mounted on the ends of four radiating posts.

U.S. colleges and universities have recognized the need to incorporate equity and justice into their institutional response to climate change. Kerry Case, Chief Sustainability Officer at the University of Utah will speak on how the U is working to center equity in current climate change action planning, and how the campus community can get involved.

GCSC Seminar: An Equitable Response to Climate Change | Sustainability By Sydney Murray, Sustainability Office Higher education sustainability has changed significantly over the last decade. A field that once supported sustainability for the sake of business and profit has since adopted a more holistic model—one that that centers social equity and inclusion alongside...

The University of Utah is in the process of developing a new climate action plan. In that process, the U community expressed the importance of considering equity in the plan and the process. Kerry Case, Chief Sustainability Officer, will look at the bigger picture of what's happening at colleges and universities, and will discuss what the U is doing and how all of us can be involved.

Seminar Series | Global Change & Sustainability Center Seminars are at 4:00 pm on alternate Tuesdays in room 295 fasb. participants may also join via zoom. To receive notifications, join our email list. Seminars are open to all, and students who are enrolled in the Seminar course, SUST 6800, have additional opportunities to engage with the speakers. Vid...