Breadcrumb
Achievements
Find out what our students, faculty, and staff are being recognized for.
Elam Bender
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Elam Bender has received an Agricultural Research Institute (ARI) NextGen Fellowship for his work using UAVs to apply precision agriculture techniques to small-scale sustainable farms. Through this research, Elam is exploring how high resolution aerial imaging and data collection techniques can help small farms improve efficiency, sustainability, and resource management. The USDA-funded ARI NextGen Fellowship Program provides 421 paid fellowships for California State University students pursuing careers in food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences.
Gabi Kirk, Levi Humphrey, Zachary Knight, Liam Blackburn, Sterling Russell, and Corra Houtermans
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Levi Humphrey (GESA '25), Zachary Knight (GESA '26), Liam Blackburn (GESA '26), Sterling Russell (GESA/Religious Studies '26), and Corra Houtermans (ENST '26) with Professor Gabi Kirk (GESA) published "People's Guides to California" in you are here: the journal of creative geography based at University of Arizona. The 2026 issue is themed "Weaving Alter-Worlds" and "explores the act of weaving as a metaphor for crafting interconnected futures that resist colonial domination and hegemonic space." This student-faculty piece explores lesser-known histories and presents of California through Indigenous geography, Black history, and other cultural geographies through creative methods including maps, zines, and even a board game. The publication is on display in front of Founders Hall 109 or can be purchased at the journal's website.
Gabi Kirk
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Dr. Gabi Kirk was awarded a American Association of University Women (AAUW) American Postdoctoral Research Leave Fellowship for 2026-27 to support the writing of her first scholarly monograph, Cultivating Sustainable Sovereignty: Palestinian Agrarian Lives in Transnational Focus.
AAUW’s largest funding program began in 1888, making it one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious fellowship programs exclusively for women. This fellowship supports women scholars who are completing doctoral dissertations, conducting postdoctoral research, or finishing research for publication. AAUW (American Association of University Women) is the nation’s leading organization for equity in higher education and women’s economic empowerment. Founded in 1881 by women who defied society’s conventions by earning college degrees, AAUW has since worked to increase women’s access, opportunity, and equity in higher education through advocacy and philanthropy of more than $146 million, supporting thousands of women scholars. Learn more at aauw.org.
Myles Chrispeels
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Geospatial Science and Technology major Myles Chrispeels won the Christopherson Geosystems Student Award for his paper "A Workflow for the Remote Sensing of Turbidity in Freshwater" at the California Geographical Society annual conference in Huntington Beach, CA. In this paper, Myles demonstrates a methodology for using high-resolution imagery and publicly available field data to develop an accessible, statistically sound workflow for monitoring turbidity and water quality patterns in freshwater drinking-water reservoirs.
Tony Nichols
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Geography major Tony Nichols won third place in the Tom McKnight Undergraduate Student Paper Award at the California Geographical Society annual conference in Huntington Beach, CA, for her paper Finding Belonging: Interviews with Queer People Across Humboldt County. In her paper, Tony highlights how queer residents in Humboldt County experience belonging, exclusion, and uncertainty across different community spaces, underscoring the importance of “third places” and supportive local environments in shaping LGBTQ+ well-being.
Ari Dixon
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Ari Dixon won third place in the undergraduate Student Cartography Award at the California Geographical Society Annual Meeting in Huntington Beach, CA. This map uses a creative visualization to highlight woman-owned breweries across the U.S. West Coast, using proportional symbols to show the number of breweries within 100-mile buffers and callout boxes to spotlight specific brewery stories in Washington, Oregon, and California.
Will Bellairs
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Geospatial Science and Technology major Will Bellairs won first place in the Tom McKnight Undergraduate Student Paper Award at the California Geographical Society Annual Conference in Huntington Beach, CA. Will's paper, titled Map Games: Learning Map Literacy through Engaging Play, demonstrated the design and classroom testing of an interactive educational map game he developed to increase elementary school students' geographic learning.
Ari Dixon, Margaret Dailey, Liam Blackburn, Myles Chrispeels, Sawyer Hofstetter, Tony Nichols, Will Bellairs, Astra Mattingly, Kyra Kranyak-Schwartz, Paul Blank
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Nine students from the Geography and Geospatial Science and Technology programs represented the department at the California Geographical Society Annual Conference in Huntington Beach, California, where they presented original research and cartographic work. In the paper presentation sessions, Will Bellairs, Myles Chrispeels, and Tony Nichols shared their research. Liam Blackburn, Margaret Dailey, and Sawyer Hofstetter presented their work during the undergraduate poster session. Ari Dixon, Astra Mattingly, and Kyra Kranyak-Schwartz presented in the cartography session. In addition to the student presentations, Geography faculty member Nicholas Perdue organized a special paper session honoring Joe Leeper. During that session, Emeritus Professor Paul Blank delivered a touching tribute.
Gabriel Roletti, Rosemary Sherriff, Lucy Kerhoulas, Jill Beckmann and Wallis Robinson
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Gabriel Roletti (ESM BS 2020, Forestry MS 2022) published his Master's thesis in Forest Ecology and Management with his co-advisors Rosemary Sherriff (GESA) and Lucy Kerhoulas (Forestry), along with other Humboldt alums Jill Beckmann and Wallis Robinson.
Gabi Kirk
Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis
Dr. Gabi Kirk will be presenting a virtual talk at the international workshop "Evanescent and Emerging Spaces: Land/World Struggles of Palestinians and Guarani" at Cardiff University (Wales) on April 22. This event will confront important and disturbing parallels between the genocides of Palestinians and the Guarani in South America, and the challenges of resisting neocolonial land theft and world grabbing. Dr. Kirk's talk at 8:45 AM PDT on April 22, titled, "Cultivating Sustainable Sovereignty: Palestinian Agrarian Lives in Transnational Focus," will share insights about Palestinian food sovereignty from her current book project.
The workshop is free and open to the public virtually, all sessions are in BST (8 hours ahead). For a full schedule and to reserve a free ticket/watch sessions, see the conference site .