This Earth Day, join us for an engaging evening in the Urban Lounge as we reconnect with UChicago alumni and explore the impact of the university on their experience after graduating. We will explore the pivotal experiences during their time as an undergraduate that shaped their careers, how they cultivated Chicago-based connections, and the skills crucial for success in their current paths. This event will feature alumni from a diverse array of fields, providing the opportunity for students to foster personal connections and explore shared experiences with alumni. Dinner will be provided. 

Join us on Friday, May 24th for the CEGU BA Thesis & Capstone Symposium, to be followed by an end-of-year celebration in the 1155 courtyard. 

Join us on Friday, March 29th for the CEGU undergraduate research funding workshop. During this session students will learn more about funding opportunities through CEGU including the Charles M. Gray Fellowship Fund, the Redekop Family Environmental Research grants, and more. 

Join journalists from the the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting for a lunchtime conversation on careers in climate journalism. Miho Ouyou is a Journalist and Post-Grad Reporting Fellow and Minsha Ouyou is a Journalist and Guest Contributor. The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting is a news media organization established in 2006 that sponsors independent reporting on global issues that other media outlets are less willing or able to undertake on their own. The Center’s goal is to raise the standard of coverage on international, systemic crises and to do so in a way that engages both the broad public and government policymakers. Lunch will be provided.

Recent publications:

• Japan’s Seafood Producers Are Feeling the Economic Fallout of China’s Ban on Imports↗
• Japan’s Plan To Discharge Radioactive Water Into the Sea Worries Residents↗

Join organizers and authors of CEGU's Exposions Magazine for the launch of our sixth issue. Hear from contributors, meet the team, pick up a copy, and enjoy some refreshments.

Objectified: Methods in Environmental Humanities is an exhibition featuring selections from the Joel Snyder Materials Collection and beyond. The materials and objects included in the exhibition represent a reckoning with some of the planet’s most pressing concerns, from climate change to biodiversity loss, through humanistic inquiry.

Staged in the CWAC Exhibitions space on the 2nd floor of the Cochrane-Woods Art Center during Winter Quarter 2024 in collaboration with Dr. Jessica Landau and students in the Methods in Environmental Humanities seminar offered by the Committee on Environment, Geography and Urbanization (CEGU), the exhibition foregrounds an interdisciplinary lens through which the contributors approach the environmental humanities. Students interrogate how humanistic disciplines such as art history, Indigenous studies, animal studies, comparative literature, and history serve as emerging methods through which we might understand the environment. Collectively, the student curators contemplate our everyday relationships with the built environment, natural resources, and stolen land through humanistic lines of inquiry.

To demonstrate how an interpretation can change depending on the methodological approach used or theoretical lens applied to an object, student curators were asked to produce two distinct labels using at least two different methodologies.

On November 30th, 2023, the United Arab Emirates convened the 28th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change—COP28 for short—in Dubai. Over the course of two weeks, negotiators from almost 200 nations took stock of progress made since the 2015 Paris Agreement—too slow, and not enough—and debated ways to transition away from fossil fuels—a debate influenced, no doubt, by the overwhelming presence of fossil fuel industry lobbyists and their political allies. Despite strenuous disagreement between delegates and scathing critique from activists, in his closing remarks on December 13th UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell proclaimed that COP28 signalled the “beginning of the end” of the fossil fuel era.

But amidst such mixed messages emerging from COP, are there other signals in the noise? What really happened offstage? What were activists and other unsanctioned participants demanding, and why? Are carbon markets and other market-based technofixes the only answer? What can we learn from COP28 from the bottom-up? Come join students from UChicago’s COP28 delegation and Professor Berit Kristofferson (UiT, Norway) to get an inside story on the politics of climate change and discuss the way forward.

Energize is The University of Chicago’s largest annual networking event for undergraduate students interested in energy and the environment.

10+ employer partners from renewable energy to local non-profits will be joining us for fireside conversations, small group coffee chats, and an open, ‘career fair’ networking event. This will be your top chance in the 2023-2024 academic year to learn about internship opportunities, meet alumni working in the environmental and energy fields, and discuss full-time opportunities.

Participating Partners

• 174 Power Global
• Argonne National Laboratory
• Acciona
• Comed/Exelon
• Field Museum
• LanzaTech
• Marathon Capital
• Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
• New Energy Nexus
• The Nature Conservancy
• Urban Rivers
• Valor Infrastructure Partners

Join us for a BA Thesis Alumni Panel to hear directly from recent grads about tackling the thesis process and transitioning to the professional world after college. Alumni will share insights on research, writing strategies, and overcoming common hurdles related to methodologies and data collection. They'll also discuss their career paths since graduation. This is a great chance to get personalized advice and ask questions as you progress through your own thesis and post-graduation journey. Food will be provided!

Panelists

• Ruby Rorty, “Is There a Legal Path to Environmental Justice? Movement-Building, Strategic Litigation, and a Case Study of Chicago’s General Iron Dispute.”
• Kimika Padilla, “Bird’s Eye View: Local Perspective from a Case Study of Aerial Cable Cars in Bogotá, Colombia.”
• Micah Wilcox, “Major ‘L’: How the Chicago Transit Authority Gentrified Its Elevated Trains.”

In December, the Energy Policy Institute at The University of Chicago (EPIC) and The University of Chicago Office of Career Advancement sponsored student delegates from the College, Booth, Harris, and Law School to attend the COP28 international climate change conferencein Dubai.

Join us for an in-depth conversation about COP, the issues, the experiences of our students, and the role you can play as a climate champion.

Persons with disabilities who may need assistance should contact International House in advance of the program at (773) 753-2274 or i-house-programs@uchicago.edu

The summer of 2023 was the hottest ever recorded on planet earth and—wait for it—next summer is expected to be hotter. Seemingly every extreme weather event—be it wildfires, flooding, or heat emergencies—is greeted as the “new normal” instead of what it should be: a clarion call for collective study and action. This event takes up that challenge and creates a CEGU forum for student-driven conversations that grapple with the climate and nature emergency as it is happening. This is an invitation to talk about root causes of the emergency, map efforts underway to address those causes and finally and urgently, imagine alternative futures.

The event will begin with a brief introduction by CEGU faculty + students and will move on to an open discussion and brainstorm about what kinds of student-led CEGU initiatives and events we can develop to address the climate-nature emergency. Come ready to share ideas and get inspired! Snacks and drinks will be provided.

This event is part of the Frizzell Family Learning & Speaker Series.

Join organizers and authors of CEGU's Exposions Magazine for the launch of a special issue in collaboration with the Chicago Studies research project, Century on 55th Street. Hear from contributors, meet the team, pick up a copy, and enjoy some refreshments.

Are you a 4th year thesis or capstone writer interested in using your project to explore a future career? Are you a 3rd year student thinking about the thesis and capstone options? In this workshop, we will discuss how to tailor your BA thesis or capstone to post-graduation pathways related to cities and the environment. While the BA thesis should stand on its own in terms of research and design, it may be useful to orient your paper towards various careers, especially those that might require or allow for the submission of a writing sample. Over the course of an hour, we’ll discuss how to select sources, methods, and visualizations that signal to a given audience your understanding of the field—whether it be urban planning, academic research, policy, consulting, or beyond. The goal will be to identify a strong audience and build some next steps towards putting your thesis or capstone paper in conversation with these careers.

All those currently seeking to earn a CEGU Doctoral Certificate are obliged to attend.  Anyone interested in the CEGU Doctoral Certificate are welcome. Attendance in person is preferred, but if you are unable to attend in person, the meeting will be also available via Zoom. You will receive a link upon submitting the registration form.

CEGU students, faculty, and friends are invited for a night at the museum to discover and engage the work of Ruth Duckworth in the Smart Museum’s exhibition Ruth Duckworth: Life As A Unity.

This is a social event for students and faculty across the University from CEGU to the arts and humanities to the physical and biological sciences to mingle, exchange ideas, and get to know each other as well as one of UChicago’s most influential faculty artists, Ruth Duckworth, who was deeply embedded in the Department of Geophysical Sciences and Hyde Park’s burgeoning climate activist community in the 1960s.

Happy Autumn Quarter! Join us in celebrating the beginning of the academic year with our Fall social event, hiking at the Indiana Dunes. Led by UChicago Alum and President of the Chicago Ornithological Society, Edward Warden, this hike will explore the many ecosystems of the Indiana Dunes including dunes, oak savannas, swamps, marshes, and forests.

We will meet in the outdoor courtyard in front of the 1155 building, located at 1155 E. 60th Street. Our bus will leave promptly at 10:00am, so be sure to be on time!

Participants are expected to wear appropriate clothing for hiking outdoors, preferably long pants and close-toed shoes. Please bring a water bottle and preferred snacks, granola bars and other light refreshments will be provided.

Please contact Tess Conway, student affairs administrator, at tconway@uchicago.edu with any questions.

Expositions Magazine, CEGU’s student publication, is hosting a launch party to celebrate the release of our latest issue on Friday, May 12. Join us in the Urban Lounge to meet and hear from the talented students who contributed to Issue No. 4! If Chicago bike lane inequities, the daily lives of Las Vegans, or the hidden spaces of Hyde Park sound intriguing to you, come join us.

When climate change, aging infrastructure and an affordable housing crisis pose existential threats to our cities and society, why has it become so difficult to get big things done? Are some of the very rules and regulations put in place to solve these sorts of problems getting in the way? A look at the troubled aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in New York City, at some of the obstacles to addressing homelessness, and at some challenges to the construction of subsidized housing around the country.

Michael Kimmelman is the architecture critic of The New York Times. He has reported from more than 40 countries, was previously The Times's chief art critic and, based in Berlin, created the Abroad column, covering cultural and political affairs across Europe and the Middle East. Twice a Pulitzer Prize finalist, he is the founder and editor-at-large of a new venture focused on global challenges and progress called Headway.

As of Autumn 2023, the Major and Minor in Environmental and Urban Studies will become the Major and Minor in Environment, Geography and Urbanization. We invite all interested students to join us for an information session on these updated program requirements, including the opportunity for Q&A. Lunch will be provided!

This event is open to all UChicago undergraduates. Third- and Fourth-Year ENST majors are encouraged to attend.

Join CEGU research mentors and fellow students to brainstorm together about the BA Thesis in the Environmental and Urban Studies major.

This event is optional (but encouraged) for Third-Year ENST majors.

Join EPIC, CEGU, and UChicago Career Advancement for the annual Energize event to network with professionals from across the sustainability, environmental, and energy fields. You will be able to meet with experienced professionals from organizations and companies such as the Invenergy, Green City Market, Shedd Aquarium, the Delta Institute, and more. Students will speak to panelists in small groups about their career experiences and how to succeed in various fields.

If you have any questions about access or to request any reasonable accommodations that will facilitate your full participation in this event such as ASL interpreting, captioned videos, Braille or electronic text, food options for individuals with dietary restrictions, etc. please contact the event organizer or Career Advancement at careeradvancement@uchicago.edu.↗

Join CEGU staff and fellow students to learn about the newly revised BA Thesis and BA Capstone process in the Environmental and Urban Studies major. Lunch will be provided.

This event is required for Third-Year ENST majors.

This event is open to all UChicago undergraduates. Third- and Fourth-Year ENST majors are encouraged to attend.

Join Research Mentor Kristi Del Vecchio for a 60-minute workshop on the IRB (Institutional Review Board) application process. This session is especially relevant for ENST thesis writers who intend to conduct research with human subjects (e.g. surveys, interviews, participant observation, etc.). The main goal of the workshop is to review the procedures and requirements for the IRB application in order to help students prepare for this process.

This event is open to all current UChicago undergraduates. Snacks will be provided.

Join Research Mentor Kristi del Vecchio and fellow thesis writers for an informal discussion on undergraduate research in Environmental and Urban Studies. Light refreshments will be served, and students will have an opportunity to share ideas and receive feedback on their projects.

This event is for third- and fourth-year ENST majors.

Join CEGU Research Mentor Kristi Del Vecchio for an interactive session on qualitative methods in environmental studies research. Her dissertation focuses on “eco-reproductive ethics," interrogating the ways in which environmental concerns (such as climate change and biodiversity loss) are impacting reproductive choices and kinship practices in the U.S. In this session, Kristi will summarize her process for data collection and analysis, and discuss some of the literature that informs her approach. This lunch-n-learn is especially relevant for students who are interested in qualitative methods in their current or future research.