College of Social Sciences, UH Mānoa
College of Social Sciences, University of Hawaii at MānoaCollege Logo
College of Social Sciences, University of Hawaii at MānoaCollege Logo

Geography and Environment

Geography and Environment (GEO) is the study of places and the relationships between people and their environment. Geographers explore both the biophysical processes of Earth’s surface and the human societies spread across it. It examines interactions with the natural environment, and the way that locations and places can impact people, and how these relationships change over time. The department offers students interdisciplinary academic training to study critical issues that face modern society, such as globalization and its regional implications, climatic hazards and its effects, resource use and sustainability, cultural change and environmental consequences, geopolitics, and the use of geospatial technologies.

Major Academic Areas

  • Asia
  • Biogeography
  • Climatic Hazards
  • Conservation and Policy
  • Culture
  • Development
  • Eco-Hydrology
  • Environment
  • GIS
  • Pacific
  • Remote Sensing

Specialties

  • Environmental Geography engages in a systematic study of the Earth’s physical environment, natural resource management and global environmental change.
  • Human Geography investigates the processes that shape human activities on the Earth.
  • Geographic Technology includes the study of cartography, geographic information systems (GIS), remote sensing, and the use of these technologies in understanding spatial environmental issues.

Department of Geography and Environment

Office: Saunders Hall 445
Email: uhmgeog@hawaii.edu
Telephone: (808) 956-8465
Website: geography.manoa.hawaii.edu