Stephen Chignell

Ant-ICON Theme 3 EMCR

I am interested in both the physical and social aspects of environmental and sustainability issues, and enjoy finding creative ways to understand their intersection. Prior to my doctoral studies, I completed a M.S. in Watershed Science at Colorado State University, where I researched relationships among water development, land change, and urban growth in Ethiopia. I also contributed geospatial analyses to the IPBES Global Assessment and was involved in a series of participatory mapping projects with the U.S. Department of State’s Secondary Cities Initiative. Since 2015, I have been part of a team studying the environmental history of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in East Antarctica. I am a strong supporter of mixed-methods and transdisciplinary research approaches, and use a variety of methods including geospatial modeling, interviews, field sampling, archival research, and social network analysis.

Current research projects / interests:

• Environmental history of the McMurdo Dry Valleys

Keywords: critical physical geography, biocultural diversity, environmental values, history of science