Faculty interests in the GGG are diverse, and attract a correspondingly diverse set of students in such areas as biophysical geography and related natural science and engineering fields, as well as human geography and related social science fields. A number of faculty members use and teach geographic information systems, remote sensing, and related geographic techniques, and the faculty have strong field orientation as well (a tradition in geography). This range of academic interests is typical of strong graduate programs in geography at other universities in the United States. The strengths of the Davis campus and its faculty enable the program to focus on several areas of emphasis in geography where faculty expertise and student interest is the greatest.

Biogeography

The biogeography area of emphasis is one of the largest in the GGG, in terms of both student and faculty participation. The area has a graduate level course in advanced biogeography (GEO 210) that is team-taught and first offered in winter 2006 by Professors Shapiro, Elliott-Fisk and Barbour. Both the faculty and students work in terrestrial, freshwater and marine bioregions across the world, from the genetic through landscape scales, dealing with population, community and ecosystem level phenomena. Plants and invertebrate and vertebrate animals are of interest, with research focusing on topics of biological conservation, ecological restoration, classical biogeography, cladistics, habitat analysis, and vegetation structure (among others). Most of our biogeographers do field-based research coupled with further laboratory analyses, statistical analysis, GIS and modeling.

Environmental and Resource Geography

Environmental and Resource Geography is one of the great strengths of the campus and the GGG. Students and faculty in the group bring a wide range of interests and skills to bear on a wide range of problems involving how humans interact with and use the environment.

Gender and Geography:

Faculty and students are involved in the Center for Gender and Global Issues, with a diversity of research projects on-going around the world with most students doing research abroad.

Tourism and Geography:

Our strength in environmental studies permits students to explore hypotheses about the interplay of tourism development and plant and animal populations in specific regions (e.g., “ecotourism”).

The GGG faculty in the social sciences can advise advanced research on the social and cultural effects of the interactions of tourists and local people.

Landscape Architecture:

The faculty in landscape architecture offers expertise in many different areas within and related to the field of landscape architecture, including landscape history and theory, urban design, community participation, ecological design, landscape restoration and historic preservation.

Students may take advantage of various related resources on the UCD campus including excellent resources in Environmental Planning and Policy, History, Art and Art History, Nature and Culture, Human and Community Development. Several research centers on the campus also offer opportunities for interaction, including the Center for Design Research, the Center for History, Society and Culture and the Institute for Transportation Studies.

GIScience:

The GGG has great strengths in this area, with several faculty heavily involved in GIS and remote sensing research and teaching, and leading both research centers on campus (such as ICE and CSTARS), the development and testing of new sensors, and the application of new methodologies to solving small to large-scale agricultural and environmental problems. A small sampling of projects includes estimation of population movement of large animals such as elephants in Africa, characterization of aquatic weeds in critical habitats using hyperspectral imagery, predicting the effects on species habitat of levee setbacks on the Sacramento River, and estimating the effects on water consumption of changes in crop management practices of rice growers.