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- 2023 Archives
- Scientists dig deep and find a way to accurately predict snowmelt after droughts
- Cracking the Case of Missing Snowmelt After Drought
- 2023 Esri Canada GIS Scholarship for SFU
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Daniel Murphy
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Kyle Kusack
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Matthew Taylor
- Anke Baker Wins Staff Achievement Award
- Spring 2023 Virtual Geospeaker Event with Ginger Gosnell-Myers
- CAG Paper Presentation Award - Congratulations to Alysha van Duynhoven!
- Informing & Engaging Urban Youth on Public Hearings: GEOG 363 Final Showcase
- Research Talk: Modeling Urban Wetland Complexities
- Highlight Paper: Quantifying land carbon cycle feedbacks under negative CO2 emissions
- Bright Addae winner of the 2023 SFU ECCE GIS Scholarship Award
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Jonny Cripps
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Diandra Oliver
- 2023 Geospeaker Presentation with Dr. Pauline McGuirk
- Congratulations to Our Graduates - October 2023
- Evaluating the impact of educational goals at SFU
- The Belongings of Precariously Housed People - A Report
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Takuma Mihara
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Adrienne Arbor
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Claire Shapton
- 2023 Distinguished Speaker Presentation with Dr. Deb Cowen
- Cheers to Paul Degrace and his well-earned retirement!
- 2024 Archives
- Professor Nicholas Blomley Honored with the Community-Engaged Research Achievement Award
- Graduate Students Claire Shapton and Marina Chavez Honored with the Community-Engaged Graduate Scholar Award
- Applications now open: 2024 ESRI Canada GIS Scholarship for SFU
- Associate Professor Rosemary Collard achieves 13th place on SFU Altmetric List
- The PEAK feature: GSU hosts inaugural RANGE conference
- Gabrielle Wong wins First Prize in 2023 Student Learning Commons Writing Contest
- Gabrielle Wong receives Warren Gill Memorial Award
- Professor Nick Blomley receives Warren Gill Memorial Award for Community Impact
- Geography Student Union recipient of the FENV 2024 Changemaker Awards
- Senior Lecturer Tara Holland reveals the secret sauce of great teaching
- Senior Lecturer Tara Holland Receives SFU 2023 Excellence in Teaching Award
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Bright Addae
- GIS undergraduate students participate in the Canada-wide 2024 AppChallenge competition
- Senior Lecturer Andrew Perkins Receives SFU 2024 Dean's Award of Excellence in Teaching
- Congratulations to Alysha van Duynhoven, Canada's 2024 ESRI Young Scholar
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Robert Ehlert
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Stephan Nieweler
- Eugene McCann writes on "livable cities" in The Tyee
- Tiana Andjelic wins the 2024 SFU ECCE GIS Scholarship Award
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Marina Chavez
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Mia Fitzpatrick
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Lan Qing Zhao
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Tyler Cole
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Benjamin Lartey
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Olivia Nieves
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Max Hurson
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to John Sykes
- Farewell to Robert "Bob" Horsfall, Associate Professor
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to André Araújo
- SFU Geography welcomes ethnobotanist, Leigh Joseph, as professor of Indigenous geographies
- Physical Geography September: What is Physical Geography?
- Alysha Van Duynhoven communicates award-winning research at international GIS conference
- How Dr. Tracy Brennand’s visionary leadership shaped the Department of Geography - a heartfelt thank-you
- Dr. Tracy Brennand honoured with the Canadian Association of Geographers (CAG) Award
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Jay Matsushiba
- Human Geography October: What is Human Geography?
- MA Student Joy Russell featured on CBC Vancouver
- Human Geography October: What is Urban Worlds?
- Ajay Minhas Receives 2024 Warren Gill Award
- Dr. Nadine Schuurman featured in SFU news article on Runnability
- GIS Month: What is Geographic Information Science (GIS)?
- Thesis Defence - Congratulations to Joy Russell
- Hallway Screens Slides
- 2023 Archives
- Alumni
Our Vision
To be the leading Geography Department in Canada, globally known for creative, cutting-edge research that defines the evolving discipline and fuels the education of informed and responsible global citizens through innovative, engaged and relevant teaching.
Our Mission
To stimulate and promote excellence in geographic scholarship through:
- the conduct, publication and broader dissemination of leading-edge research that matters;
- the provision of an undergraduate learning environment that fosters the knowledge, skills and experiences necessary to prepare students for life in an ever-changing world, and to engage, inspire and challenge them to become informed global citizens;
- the provision of a research-based, mentorship model of graduate education
- the sharing of geographic knowledge and the provision of geographic insights on important societal issues
Our Guiding Values
- Space and place matter: They drive a broader understanding of environment that includes natural, built, social and organizational environments, and necessarily includes theory, science, policy and practice and embraces other traditions of enquiry that are not motivated by questions of human-nature relations, such as the many cultural, social, and economic aspects of urban studies and sustainable communities, the geological tradition in earth sciences, and the society-space tradition in geography.
- The power of ideas and skills: We pursue and value discovery and creation of new knowledge and innovative educational approaches that foster ways of thinking, knowledge, skills and experiences that engage, inspire and challenge our students, staff, faculty, alumni and community members to become better informed and responsible global citizens.
- Learning by doing: We practice and value experiential learning in its many varied forms throughout our geography curriculum. Given the multifaceted nature of geographical knowledge, we are committed to providing active, student-centered learning environments such as fieldwork and project-based exercises. Such learning experiences promote understanding of practical applications of geographic concepts to solve real world problems; enhance critical thinking; develop communication and interpersonal skills for working effectively in teams and community settings; and, encourage the acquisition of transferable skills for various job markets.
- Interdisciplinarity: As a discipline that straddles the natural, social and information sciences we embrace interdisciplinarity and value the advances in knowledge and understanding that can be made at the intersections of disciplines.
- Diversity: We value diversity in the Department and University. It is a fundamental source of insight and innovation for our research and teaching practices, and it enriches all communities inside and outside academia. Diversity helps make space for the excluded by addressing injustices that prevent marginalized groups from participating in University life as students, faculty and staff. We are committed to learning from and putting into practice contemporary initiatives concerned with promoting equity, diversity and inclusivity in educational contexts such as indigenization and participatory research with local communities.
- Collegiality: We value an environment of equity and inclusion in which people treat one another with honesty, respect and with each other’s best interests in mind. We value fair, transparent and inclusive decision making.