Environmental Geographers

I. JOB SUMMARY

Main Topic: Environment and Society
Secondary Topic: Places and Regions

Overview: Environmental Geographers study the earth and how humans interact with their environments. They can focus on a specific sector of the environment such as water, air quality, energy, climate, or hazards and look for trends and spatial patterns behind environmental phenomena. This is primarily done through either qualitative or quantitative research; however, many environmental geographers now employ mixed methods, which stresses the complexities of how humans impact their environments, and vice-versa. They complete their research through field work, interviews, implementing geographic information systems and other geospatial technologies, and statistical analysis; however, there are several different ways in which environmental geographers complete their research. Environmental geographers and the work they do is especially important today due to the increased interest that has risen around environmental issues such as climate change, resource management, and how humans can directly impact their surrounding environments.

Geographers at work:  Environmental geographers, physical geographers, human and cultural geographers

Recommended College Courses:  Introduction to Physical Geography, Global Environmental Change, Natural Resource Use and Management, Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems, Geographic Elements of Environmental Law, Environmental Compliance, Environmental Hazards, Interpretive Environmental Geography, Conservation Leadership, Remote Sensing and Earth Observation, Climatology, Research Methods in Geography

Skills: GIS and technologies, physical geography, qualitative and quantitative methods

Occupation Group: Life, Physical, and Social Science

Learn more about Environmental Geographers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/geographers.htm