Geography

GEOGRAPHY - The InfoGraphics Lab and the Eugene-based nonprofit Beyond Toxics collaborated on a dynamic map that has pulled back the veil on pesticide use in Oregon. Working with geography master's student Mason Leavitt, the map is a public service and serves as a training ground for students learning how to communicate complex data.

GEOGRAPHY - For Graduate-Professional Student Appreciation Week in 2026, CAS gradate students share their experiences of what makes their experience special at CAS. CAS is home to 1,295 graduate students: 307 master’s and 959 PhD. With April 6-10 Graduate-Professional Student Appreciation Week, CAS reached out to some of its graduate students to hear how about their experiences at the college.

GEOGRAPHY - Challenges like climate change, conservation planning and natural resource management often extend beyond geographic and political borders, which means it’s vital that analysts and decision-makers can access environmental maps that do the same. CAS researchers James Lamping and Professor Melissa Lucash developed new maps that suggest Alaska and British Columbia forests store more carbon than previously thought.

COMPUTER SCIENCE, EARTH SCIENCE, GEOGRAPHY - The world can be hazardous: seismic activity that shakes the earth, rising sea levels and volcanic eruptions that reshape the landscape. Meet some of the CAS scientists who are studying the most powerful forces that threaten humanity.

GEOGRAPHY, INDIGENOUS, RACE AND ETHNIC STUDIES - Oregon’s historical markers, those roadside signs commemorating the state's past, give a version of history that University of Oregon researchers say is skewed. But a team of students is working to address the histories that highway markers omit through an online interactive map.

GEOGRAPHY - Are flying robots taking over? Not in this geography class, where students learn how to control the drones that will help map our future. The course Mapping with Drones invites students—whether they're majoring in environmental studies, geography, or journalism—to explore the basics and fundamentals of using drones to map the geographic features of a location.

GEOGRAPHY, GLOBAL STUDIES - A student in the College of Arts and Sciences and Clark Honors College, Charles Petrik was drawn to his opportunity with the mayor’s office of Medellin, Colombia, because he is passionate about cultural exchange. While interning, he lived with students from all over the U.S., but his work at the office was conducted entirely in Spanish. In addition to a language “crash course,” Petrik analyzed pothole and public space data, creating representations that city officials could use to identify areas for infrastructure projects.

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES, GEOGRAPHY - Damp weather in the winter and spring doesn’t necessarily protect against wildfires later in the year, according to University of Oregon researchers. Instead, increased moisture can act to increase the threat of fire as summer heat bakes the landscape.

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES, GEOGRAPHY - Fire is a dynamic process and requires a multidisciplinary approach to appreciate its complexities. Researchers in the College of Arts and Sciences are combining their unique perspectives to gain a comprehensive understanding of fire and its impacts on West Coast communities.