Maxwell School News and Commentary

“The type of damage that you'll see is to property, to infrastructure, to roads and highways, but also to critical infrastructure like hospitals and power stations. And this will be devastating. It will be in the many billions of dollars,” says Farhana Sultana, professor of geography and the environment. 

Farhana Sultana, professor of geography and the environment, has edited and contributed to this collection, which exposes how legacies of colonialism, imperialism, and capitalism co-produce and exacerbate the climate crisis, create disproportionate impacts on those who contributed the least to climate change, and influence global and local responses. (Routledge, 2024).

The Maxwell School’s 100th anniversary celebration will be held on Oct. 18 in Goldstein Auditorium.

The three-day gathering drew top experts from around the globe to explore issues such as cultural identity and regional economics. 

The Maxwell School welcomes several new faculty members for the start of the 2024-25 academic year.   

The Maxwell School professor talked about the effects of climate change and importance of geographical knowledge during her remarks for the Voices from the Global South series.

“He [Crown Prince Saud Al Saud] had come to Arizona in 1943 and he had seen Arizona's dairy industry and really was impressed by it. So he went back to take over this government controlled farm in Saudi Arabia, the Al Khad farms, and asked the farmers in charge of that to set up their own dairy operation like what he had seen in Arizona,“ says Natalie Koch, professor of geography and the environment.

Playing into those politics are gasoline prices, which have become a partial barometer of economic security, says Matthew Huber, professor of geography and environment. He also notes that that the oil and gas industry has history of funding research that contradicts climate science.

“The installation of [Nobel Laureate Muhammad] Yunus as interim head is what Bangladesh needs at this time. His first speech called to ensure the protection of all religious and ethnic minorities, prevent violence and strengthen  democratic processes to keep rebuilding Bangladesh,” writes Farhana Sultana, professor of geography and the environment.

“This is a massive flooding event...and the floods were quite rapid in their onset. There are over 5 million people who are marooned or stranded and devasted across 11 districts, 23 reported deaths now but those figures will rise and relief cannot reach many people,” says Farhana Sultana, professor of geography and the environment.