EEGS welcomes Adebiyi as Assistant Professor of Sustainable Food Systems.
November 1, 2022
In August 2022, the EEGS Department welcomed Dr. Jelili Adebiyi as a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Sustainable Food Systems. Dr. Adebiyi, or Gana as he asked us to call him, moved with his family to Marquette this August from a Research Associate position at Michigan State University (MSU). We are excited to introduce him to you.
This fall semester Gana is teaching GC 164 Human Geography and GC 317 Geography of Food Systems, which are a great fit for his academic background. He is infusing his courses with systems thinking and experiential learning as the students address issues of inequality and marginalization with regard to food systems whether in the region, in the United States, or around the world. On campus and in the community students are identifying strategies to reduce food waste.
Gana describes himself as “somebody in search of meaning” on food insecurity and hunger issues, and as a “scholar–practitioner” who wants to find answers and develop solutions. How did he become interested in these topics? He grew up in a rural, agricultural community in Nigeria with his father in the military and his mother in the farming community. At a young age he starting imagining more efficient ways to cultivate crops. Naturally gregarious, he talked with farmers and decided that the solution for growing more food was mechanized farming.
His logical next step was to earn a Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Lagos, Nigeria. In college, Gana was active nationally, and as the president of a student organization he committed to addressing injustice, quality education, poverty, and food insecurity. As he learned more about the history of civilizations and empires, he gained a new understanding of food production as a development and planning issue. That led him to pursue a Master’s degree in the social sciences in Malaysia to learn about the rise and fall of civilizations, and then to earn two Master’s degrees in Community & Regional Planning and in Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University.
From there, and with an idea that development can be done in a sustainable way, Gana earned his PhD with a double major at Michigan State University. He integrated his interests in Community Sustainability and Environmental Science & Policy to complete two complementary projects. Gana’s dissertation focused on understanding drivers and constraints of adopting organic farming practices in Ibadan, Nigeria. During his recent appointment at MSU he was developing best practices to store apples to prevent outbreaks of listeria and increasing the adoption of USDA Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) produce audit programs. He brings his U.S. research interests with him to NMU. Gana will also continue to pursue his interests in international development related to agrifood systems in Sub-Saharan Africa and organic farming specifically. One goal is that his research findings will encourage the government to develop policies that will support the market for organic food so that more sustainable farming practices will make sense environmentally and economically. Another vision is to lead a Faculty-Led Study Abroad trip to show NMU students first-hand what he has been teaching about, and to develop an academic and cultural exchange for students across the continents.
Gana is a family man. He enjoys spending time with his family—reading books, telling stories, and gardening. He also loves to play, watch, and discuss soccer. He has already developed a connection with the Men’s Varsity Soccer Team at NMU.
After his rural early days, Gana grew up in a city and is used to a fast-moving, noisy environment. Since moving to Marquette, he is embracing the small-town opportunities, including spending time in the comfort of nature. We are excited that Gana is already applying his background in international sustainable development, environmental management, and systems thinking to his teaching, scholarship, and service at NMU and to helping improve food access across the Upper Peninsula.
Leach serves Marquette County and the Marquette County Climate Adaptation Task Force
November 1, 2022
Alumna Emily Leach (BS, Environmental Studies and Sustainability; minor in Native American Studies, 2013) is a senior planner in the Resource Management Department for the County of Marquette, and for the past three years has also been the Chair of the Marquette County Climate Adaptation Task Force (CATF). She supports local community efforts to improve resilience to climate change. CATF was established in 2013 by NMU, the County of Marquette, the Superior Watershed Partnership, and other local leaders. It balances mitigation and adaptation to climate change through fostering collaboration, supporting infrastructure upgrades, and educational endeavors through existing democratic processes and establishing new creative public and private partnerships.
Emily's husband, Nick, is also an alum of EEGS and is the Negaunee Township Manager.
Williams honored as an inaugural recipient of the Voyager Scholarship
November 1, 2022
Elizabeth Williams, a junior in Environmental Studies and Sustainability, is an inaugural recipient of the Voyager Scholarship. Developed by former President Barack Obama and Brian Chesky, the CEO of Airbnb, the Voyager Scholarship provides financial support to college students intent on pursuing a career in public service. We caught up with Elizabeth recently.
"The scholarship provides me with a large network of present and future public servants from around the country, including the 99 other Voyagers awarded the scholarship. I am so honored to receive the award; as someone who has never traveled outside of the Midwest (and hardly out of Michigan), the access to a diverse group of people and the opportunity to travel around the world is incredible. I am definitely the rural candidate, but this allows me to bring a unique perspective to the forefront and be a representative of the Upper Peninsula.
I hope to use my degree in Environmental Studies & Sustainability to pursue a career in urban planning and active transportation. This scholarship makes it possible to travel to cities and countries (in my case, hopefully Copenhagen, Denmark) to study and learn the processes used to create bikeable/walkable cities. I am now able to further explore the intersection of transportation, sustainability, zoning, community, and housing, which perfectly complements what I'm learning at NMU."
More information on Elizabeth and the inaugural cohort can be found on the Voyagers Cohort page. Click here for the original WLUC TV6 story.
Congratulations, Elizabeth!
Kusek is a long-time leader of AAG specialty groups
November 1, 2022
Dr. Weronika Kusek has been an active member of the American Association of Geographers (AAG) since 2010. She serves on the Boards of the Ethnic Geography and Cultural Geography Specialty Groups. We recently caught up with Dr. Kusek to learn more about her responsibilities as a board member in these groups.
I have been an active member of the American Association of Geographers since 2010. In the last 12 years I have attended the annual meetings where I presented my research, attended sessions in my field, and I served on 2 of the 75 specialty and affinity group boards. I also regularly attend and take students to the regional meetings of the AAG: either to the East Lakes or to the West Lakes division meeting. In 2016 I co-chaired with Dr. Susy Ziegler the joint regional AAG meeting of East Lakes and West Lakes. Several NMU students and faculty helped us host the meeting.
This fall, Dr. Susy Ziegler and I are taking 15 students to the AAG East Lakes division conference at Muskegon Community College in Muskegon, MI. This is a great opportunity for our students to attend, participate, and present their work in a professional setting.
Most recently I have been serving on the Ethnic Geography Specialty Group as a board member. The goal of this group is to promote the common interests of persons working in ethnic geography, to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas within the AAG, and to encourage its members in their research and teaching of ethnic experiences from comparative, national/transnational and global perspectives. The EGSG currently has more than 200 members. As an active specialty group, the EGSG sponsored dozens of papers, posters, and panels sessions at the annual meetings. My term started in 2018. For most board members it is an 8-year commitment where you serve on a variety of different committees: the EGSG Outstanding Dissertation Proposal Award, the EGSG Student Travel Grant, the EGSG Outstanding Student Paper Award, the EGSG Distinguished Scholar Award, the EGSG Distinguished Ethnic Geography Career Award, the EGSG Distinguished Service Award, just to mention a few.
Prior to serving on the Ethnic Geography Specialty Group board, I chaired the Cultural Geography Specialty Group. The Cultural Geography Specialty Group seeks to promote and encourage scholarly research and quality teaching in the field of Cultural Geography through the exchange of current thoughts, trends and information focusing on all areas of Cultural Geography. The CGSG encourages, facilitates and sponsors the organization of paper sessions and discussion panels at national and regional meetings of the Association of American Geographers. The officers are elected by secret ballot at the CGSG annual business meeting that is held during the annual meeting of the AAG. Some of my responsibilities as chair included: a) chairing the annual business meeting; b) together with the Secretary/Treasurer, the publication of the Cultural Geography Specialty Group Newsletter on an annual basis; c) submitting to the AAG office an annual report of the activities, finances, and immediate objectives of the CGSG; and d) providing general stewardship for the members of the specialty group in all matters while promoting the discipline of Geography in general and cultural geography specialization in particular. I also helped coordinate the annual awards: The Cultural Geography Specialty Group (CGSG) Terry G. Jordan-Bychkov (PhD) and MA Student Paper Awards to recognize outstanding work by graduate students pursuing research in cultural geography and The Cultural Geography Specialty Group (CGSG) Denis E. Cosgrove (PhD) and Masters level Research Grant Awards that provide a measure of support for graduate students to conduct high-quality research projects for their master's thesis or doctoral dissertation.
During my service for AAG, I have met dozens of wonderful colleagues from whom I learned a lot. Many of the sessions I attend during our meetings help me to stay current with the research trends in my field of study. I incorporate this knowledge into my lectures at NMU, and I often share with students the work of my colleagues from all over the world.
Miller-Porter stays active as a mindfulness sustainability and environmental educator
November 1, 2022
This fall, Angela Miller-Porter a mindfulness-based sustainability educator, rejoined the faculty in EEGS as an adjunct instructor. In addition to her teaching responsibilities, Angela is a mindfulness-based sustainability educator that works at the community level as the Great Start Collaborative (GSC) Director for Marquette and Alger Counties. For her work with the GSC, she writes sustainability initiatives into her grants that involve educating teachers, parents, children, and the community at large about the benefits of both mindfulness and sustainability. We recently caught up with Angela.
Where are you from?
I’m from East Lansing Michigan and attended Michigan State University (MSU) for both my bachelors and master’s degrees in community sustainability.
What is your current position here at NMU and what are your responsibilities?
I’m currently an adjunct instructor at NMU and teaching Introduction to Sustainability which I love! My students are deeply engaged and I’m shown beautiful insight from their innate and lived wisdom about what it really means to cultivate the peace we’re all striving for with sustainability.
What were some of your current/previous positions and responsibilities?
Previous to my current work at NMU and with the GSC, I was a naturalist at a nature center. I also worked on a small-scale organic farm. I am permaculture certified and my research focus for my masters was on the creation of a community and children's garden (which are still up and running today). One way or another I have been involved with environmental education for the past 15 years.
Tell us a bit about your current research in environmental education, sustainability, and permaculture?
I’m currently a doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point working towards an EdD in Educational Sustainability. My research focus is on mindfulness in sustainability education and for my dissertation I will be designing a mindfulness in sustainability university course to pilot. I’m a longtime meditator of 18 years and have been a certified meditation teacher for the past 4 years. For many years now I have been trying to articulate the connection between mindfulness and sustainability and so I feel my research is the culmination of a lifelong journey. The healing of people and the planet go together hand in hand. Mindfulness is scientifically proven to heal and sustainability is all about healing our world. When brought together the inner peace and clarity of being that mindfulness brings coupled with the outer collaborative resolve and healing actions of sustainability creates powerful insights and inspirations to guide our way.
What are your hobbies and interests outside of work?
Outside of work, I am first and foremost a proud mother of two daughters, now 17 and 22 (senior in high school and senior at MSU). By the way, my senior in college is minoring in sustainability and my 17-year-old plans to. They are kind young women who want to dedicate their lives to the healing of our world so I’m a happy mom. They are also a joy to be with and pretty much my life outside of work. We have two dogs who we love to run the forest and lake with. I’m a backpacker that loves adventure in the wild. I’ll settle for walks in the woods or lake which I’m so grateful to be surrounded with such beauty where we live. My family and I also love to play games and I’m always reading something. I also can’t resist a good dystopian book or movie.
Henry brings diverse environmental education experiences to EEGS
November 1, 2022
Kathleen Henry recently joined the faculty in EEGS as an adjunct instructor, having formerly been a student in EEGS. We recently caught up with Kathleen.
Where are you from?
I was born and raised in Chicago, though I don’t like to identify as such. Marquette is where I “grew up;” it is the place I learned to drive (at 21 years old). My father—and all sets of grandparents—was born in Ireland, making my Irish heritage quite influential in my upbringing; from competitively Irish dancing, to playing Gaelic football, to cooking three styles of potatoes at every meal, the Emerald Isle never seems too far away. As for who I am: I consider myself a sister, daughter, student, writer, environmentalist, educator, Michigander, music-enthusiast, and most of all, a friend.
What is your current position here at NMU and what are your responsibilities?
My role at Northern is as an Adjunct Instructor for GC 205: Introduction to Geographic Research in the Earth, Environmental, and Geographical Sciences (EEGS) Department. As an instructor, I hope to empower students to explore their interests with a spatial perspective and to apply critical thinking throughout the process; my desire for our time together is to engage in open, respectful discourse while growing as learners and stewards.
I appreciate the opportunity to facilitate in the same room (3710) that I spent numerous hours in while attending NMU as a student—but now the walls are yellow, plants are abundant, and the kettle is never far (thank you, Teresa).
What were some of your current/previous positions and responsibilities?
I’ve considered myself a “permanent volunteer” for most of my adult life. From serving as an AmeriCorps NCCC FEMA Corps member, Peace Corps Uganda Volunteer, NPS Environmental Education intern, NPS Teacher-Ranger-Teacher participant, AmeriCorps Urban Teacher fellow, to my current role as the Education Specialist with the local environmental non-profit (Superior Watershed Partnership, SWP), service-based roles are where I feel most comfortable. Other roles have included Lead Preschool Teacher at an Expeditionary Learning, place-based curriculum school in Washington, DC and an environmental educator at Clear Lake Education Center in Manistique, Michigan. With the SWP, I’ve had the incredible experiences of visiting the most remote lighthouse in America (Stannard Rock Lighthouse), helping to deploy weather buoys in Lake Superior, assisting the City of Marquette with 2022’s Art Week Water theme, engaging in citizen science salamander programming, and securing funding to provide hiking boots for elementary students—all while on the clock!
Tell us a bit about your current research in place-based environmental education, Native American Studies, and early childhood and special education, as well as the work associated with your numerous certifications?
Receiving a Master’s Degree in Education from Johns Hopkins University through a program centered around race, culture, and equity in urban education, my focus applied a place-based, culturally relevant approach to facilitation and curriculum development. During that time, I became a certified National Geographic Educator and earned initial certifications in Early Childhood Education and Special Education. Integrating my graduate research with my undergraduate degree from NMU in Environmental Studies and Sustainability with minors in Native American Studies and Political Science, with my current role as the Education Specialist at a local, environmental nonprofit (Superior Watershed Partnership; SWP), involves the development and instruction of research-based, data driven environmental programming and grant proposal writing, reporting, and implementation; I strive to provide locally-relevant environmental education that is aligned and differentiated for all audiences. As an organization, the SWP provides technical, educational, and monitoring assistance on a variety of Great Lakes protection initiatives with emphasis on Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, and Lake Huron while working with all five Tribes and 15 counties throughout the Upper Peninsula, as well as numerous local, state, federal, and international partners.
What are your hobbies and interests outside of work?
I have a love/hate relationship with sharks that brought me to Gansbaai, South Africa (AKA Shark Alley) in 2014 to participate as a volunteer in a Great White Shark Research Expedition via Marine Dynamics. Shark Week is the best week of the year. Assigning a species of shark that best matches personality traits of loved ones is something I like to do in my free time. Reading, walking, and creating collaborative Spotify playlists are also hobbies of mine.
Naito elected Secretary-Treasurer of the Early Career Ecologists Section of ESA
November 1, 2022
Dr. Adam Naito was elected as the 2022-2023 Secretary-Treasurer of the Early Career Ecologists Section (ECE) of the Ecological Society of America (ESA). The ECE Section is dedicated to supporting early-career ecologists (postdoctoral researchers, assistant professors, adjuncts and lecturers, individuals in non-profit, advocacy, and industrial scientific entities) with resources and guidance relating to the job search process, tenure and promotion, non-academic career options, the securing of research funding, course development, and fulfilling committee and other service responsibilities.
As Secretary-Treasurer, Dr. Naito will help develop a webinar series dedicated to mentorship of early-career scientists and plan ECE activities for the ESA Annual Meeting in Portland, Oregon in 2023.
