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Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability

College of Atmospheric and Geographic Sciences wordmark. Where the land meets the sky. Home to three academic units. Nine career tracks. Rated the number one school of aviation in the country by Flying Magazine. New professional pilot helicopter track options. Number one regionally in sustainability education. The largest meteorology program in the country. Number one nationally in severe storm research. Geography and environmental sustainability, aviation, and meteorology. There’s only one College of Atmospheric and Geographic Sciences. The University of Oklahoma wordmark.

The Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability

Our mission is to conduct innovative and socially relevant research; to expand students’ intellectual vistas via critical perspectives and valuable tools and skills; and to catalyze sustainable human-natural systems.

We seek to shape a sustainable future for Oklahoma and beyond by creating a community of interdisciplinary scholars and leaders who aim to comprehend the Earth’s human-natural systems.

 

Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability logo.
 

#1

Regionally in
Sustainability
Education

 

3

Specialized
research
clusters

 

9:1

Focused
Student-to-faculty
ratio

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Degree Options

Environmental sustainability with a landscape with windmills in a field.

Environmental Sustainability addresses how societies can meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. The degree offers three different areas of concentration: culture and society, planning and management, and science and natural resources.

Geography with a landscape of a rocky coastline along the ocean.

Geography is an integrative field that studies people and the world in which they live and the discipline consists of two primary fields: human geography and physical geography. Both of these disciplines use GIS technologies and other analytical tools such as statistics, modeling and qualitative approaches.

Geographic Information Sciences with a map of Oklahoma in the backround.

Geographic Information Science is one of the most rapidly expanding areas of study and employment in the U.S. addresses how geographic information systems and remote sensing (aerial photography and satellite imagery) are used for gathering, analyzing and visualizing all forms of geographically referenced information.

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Launch your career by studying Geography at The University of Oklahoma!

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Take your education to the next level

Find out why our research enterprise is like no other

See all the opportunities a path at DGES can offer

DGES Upcoming Events

Uncomfortable conversations in comfy chairs, definitly earned it: tokenization or weaponization, a speakeasy series led by DGES students, Sarkeys room 442, thursday sep 26th 12:30 - 2:30, contact Jay Wimhurst and Gloria Nakyagaba for more details.
Uncomfortable Conversations in Comfortable Chairs

Join us Thursday, September 26th in Sarkeys Room 442 at 12:30 P.M. for our next session of Uncomfortable Conversations in Comfy Chairs. This session's topic is "Definitly Earned it: Tokenization or Weaponization." 

Students in a green house with tools.
DGES Colloquium: Dr. Toni Klemm

Join DGES for our DGES Colloquium with Dr. Toni Klemm for his talk on "Adapting Agriculture to Climate Change - A Professional and Personal Journey." The event is on August 23rd from 4 PM - 5 PM in SEC M204.

Not only urban land: an integrated approach to forecasting urban land-transportation growth, sept 20 4-5 PM, SEC M204.
DGES Colloquium: Dr. Burak Guneralp

Join us September, 20th for a DGES Colloquium with Dr. Burak Guneralp!

The event is at 4 P.M. in SEC M204 with Dr. Hurst's presentation titled "Not Only Urban Land: an Integrated Approach to Forecasting Urban Land-Transportation Growth."

DGES Calendar Events

Dr. Elizath Hurst, Center for Applied Social Research, The Unitversity of Oklahoma, VISUALIZING VULNERABILITY: MAPPING AND CATALOGING VULNERABILITIES TO SEVERE AND HAZARDOUS WEATHER WITH THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TO IMPROVE COMMUNICATION OUTCOMES, Sept. 13, 4-5:00 PM, SEC M204, headshot of Dr. Hurst, map of US
DGES Colloquium: Dr. Elizabeth Hurst

Join us September, 13th for a DGES Colloquium with Dr. Elizabeth Hurst!

The event is at 4 P.M. in SEC M204 with Dr. Hurst's presentation titled "Visualizing Vulnerability: Mapping and Cataloging Vulnerabilities to Severe and Hazardous Weather with the National Weather Service to Improve Communication Outcomes."


DGES News

for more information: jobs.ou.edu, we're currently hiring, academic advisor, The Department of Geography and Sustainability is hiring an academic advisor to support our undergraduate programs, job location: norman campus, Schedule: full time, work schedule: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., work type: onsite, salary range: targeted $40,000 based on experience, benefits provided: yes, required in application: cover letter and resume, job number 242552, job posting: september 25, 2024, the department of geography and environmental sustainability

Academic Advisor Position Available

The Department of Geography and Sustainability is hiring an academic advisor to support our undergraduate programs. This is a full-time position on the Norman Campus. Contribute to student sucess and submit your resume and cover letter today.

Learn more

Photo of Dr. Wang.
DGES Faculty Dr. Wang Awarded $100,000 NASA Research Grant

Congratulations to DGES faculty Dr. Wang on being awarded a $100,000 grant from NASA - Headquarters | NAS-HDQ for his research project titled "Compound heat and ozone pollution episodes in the urban environment: dynamics, mechanisms, and mitigation with nature-based solutions."

Read more here

Image of a tornado.
DGES Ph.D. Student Paulina Ćwik is Featured in a NPR Science Friday Digital Feature

Dr. McPherson’s current doctoral student, Paulina Ćwik, and her research is featured in a high profile NPR Science Friday digital feature about the recently released film Twisters.

Read the feature here

Image of a creek.
The film ᏗᏂᏠᎯ ᎤᏪᏯ (MEET ME AT THE CREEK) was screened at the deadCenter Film Festival in OKC

The film ᏗᏂᏠᎯ ᎤᏪᏯ (MEET ME AT THE CREEK) screened on June 6-9 at the deadCenter Film Festival in OKC Festival. DGES Associate Chair, Dr. Laurel Smith, served as Executive Producer on this short film.

Click here to learn more

Image of Aparna Bamzai.
DGES Alumni Dr. Aparna Bamzai-Dodson is featured in a USGS Scientist Spotlight

DGES alumni Dr. Aparna Bamzai-Dodson, who earned her Ph.D. in 2020, is now the Assistant Regional Administrator of the North Central Climate Adaptation Science Center and is featured in a USGS Scientist Spotlight.

Read the spotlight here

ᏗᏂᏠᎯ ᎤᏪᏯ MeeT Me At The Creek BEST MINI-DOC COMPETITION BIG SKY DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL 2024 World Premiere Zootown Arts Community Center February 22nd - 11:30am February 24th - 2:45pm.
Ph.D. Student Afshin Shayeghi Moghalou Wins Best Graduate Poster on 2023 GIS Day

Afshin Shayeghi Moghalou's poster titled "Assessing Drought Impacts on Groundwater and Agriculture in Iran Using High-Resolution Precipitation and Evapotranspiration Products" won first place in the Graduate Poster Competition at OU's 2023 GIS Day!

2023 GIS Day Storymap

ᏗᏂᏠᎯ ᎤᏪᏯ MeeT Me At The Creek BEST MINI-DOC COMPETITION BIG SKY DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL 2024 World Premiere Zootown Arts Community Center February 22nd - 11:30am February 24th - 2:45pm.
The film ᏗᏂᏠᎯ ᎤᏪᏯ (MEET ME AT THE CREEK) premiered as a top 10 finalist for the best mini-doc competition at the Big Sky Documentary Festival

The film ᏗᏂᏠᎯ ᎤᏪᏯ (MEET ME AT THE CREEK) premiered as a top 10 finalist for the best mini-doc competition at the academy award-qualifying Big Sky Documentary Festival. DGES Associate Chair, Dr. Laurel Smith, served as Executive Producer on this short film.

Click here to learn more

Headshot of Paulina Cwik.
DGES Ph.D. Student Paulina Cwik Published in Early Career Climate Network

The blog entry in Early Career Climate Network (ECCN) news from July 2024 titled "Rising Tides: The Growing Challenge of Overwash in the Pacific Islands" was written by Paulina Ćwik, who is advised by Dr. Renee McPherson.

Read the Article Here

Darren Purcell and Becca Palzynski at a conference booth.
Dr. Darren Purcell Wins OCSS 2024 University Professor of the Year

Dr. Darren Purcell won the Oklahoma Council for Social Studies 2024 College/University Professor of the Year!

Learn More About OCSS


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