Assistant Professor In Residence, Anthropology, University of Connecticut

Areas of Interest:

• Human-environment interactions
• Cross-cultural conservation
• Community response to natural hazards and the effects of climate change
• Cultural, historical, economic, and environmental ethics linkages

"Climate Change"

“Corporate responsibility, corruption issues, environmental damage and justice” the list goes on."

Connections between Climate Change and Health

“When we think about climate change, especially in an urban environment, it acts as a stress multiplier. So whether it’s poverty, injustice, lack of health access, adding climate makes all of these difficult things, worse. We see all of these highlighted through urban heat islands.”

Public Awareness of Climate Change Issues

"The term climate change is very polarized and very divided. We have to move away from that from trying to convince everyone that climate change is real and rather find common ground. If you ask people how do you feel about climate change they’re gonna say ‘No, I’m not...get out of my face.’ But if you ask them how concerned are you about long term health, economic well being, food and clean water, and national security, those areas then you can find that all cross cut partisan lines and finding common ground in the ways that climate change affects all of those topics and its easier to bring in the changes but leaving the term climate change and global warming out of that equation."

Education Among College Students

"When it comes to UConn, we can educate and spread accurate information in the ways in which people are affected by climate change, the extent in which impoverished communities are affected. It’s not saying that climate change is targeting the poor, it has universal effects but its that much more severe for poorer populations that don’t have the representation, the assistance, and the protection in place and that don’t have the option to get up and move. So information is big at UConn."

Distinguished Professor, Geography, University of Connecticut

Areas of Interest:

• Globalization
• Climate change
• Global-local linkages
• Political ecology

Below are some

"Climate Change"

“Storm surge, sea level rise, drought, fires, you know, the list could go on. All sorts of demonstrative impact.”

Connections between Climate Change and Health

“We are going to have more polluted water sources. We are going to have problems in water accessibility partly due to climate change. We are also going to have respiratory conditions, smog and smoke and the hotter, hazy weather you get in summer...which is the unhealthier weather.”

Public Awareness of Climate Change Issues

“You don’t have to believe in greenhouse gas emissions. You don’t have to believe in climate science, okay, but you do have to believe that sea levels are rising. You do have to believe that we’re having more crazy storms than we used to have. You’ve got to believe that agriculture in the Midwest is grappling with production issues because of the changing climate……forget about the science, you just gotta look around at what’s going on, on the ground.”

Education Among College Students

“Getting students to understand both the urgency of having action happen, but also, and this is going to sound completely contradictory, but also to understand the patience that they’re going to need that change doesn’t happen tomorrow and that you have to work within the system to actually have change happen.”