Today, we welcomed Angelique Willis to the show. Angelique is a dual-major PhD student in the MSU Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences and the Environmental Science and Policy Program. Angelique is strongly committed to leveraging her expertise in Geography, Public Health, Epidemiology, Environmental Health, and GIS to enhance drinking water quality and safeguard human health. Her work focuses on the unique drinking water challenges faced by low-income communities and communities of color, where systemic inequities often exacerbate these issues. Through rigorous research and informed policy advocacy, Angelique aims to uncover and address these disparities, driving transformative changes. Her approach involves mapping drinking water quality issues and conducting studies to assess health impacts. Ultimately, she strives to create sustainable solutions that resonate both locally and nationally, advancing environmental justice and improving public health outcomes.

Angelique also discussed the importance of National Drinking Water Week, which takes place the first week of May. In 1988, the American Water Works Association (AWWA) brought Drinking Water Week to the attention of the U.S. government and formed a coalition along with the League of Women Voters, the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Rep. Robert Roe and Sen. Dennis DeConcini subsequently sponsored a resolution to name the first week of May as Drinking Water Week, and the week-long observance was declared in a joint congressional resolution signed by then-President Ronald Reagan. Recognizing Drinking Water Week is an easy way to educate the public, connect with the community, and promote employee morale. Too often, water utilities only receive negative publicity — a main break in the middle of rush hour or increasing rates. Recognizing Drinking Water Week provides an opportunity for positive communication.

For more information about Angelique’s work, visit her LinkedIn page. To learn more about National Drinking Water Week, visit the American Water Works Association website.

Our Sponsor: The MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program

Our sponsor for this episode is the onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program at Michigan State University. Their online Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization Certificate aims to advance the geospatial tools & technology skill-set of professionals currently working in fields that use geospatial technologies. It is also an excellent opportunity for anyone looking to revamp their current career, earn continuing-education or teaching credits, or simply learn new and marketable skills.

The online Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization Certificate consists of four (core) fully online courses that are each delivered in 7-week sessions. These core courses cover topics ranging from map design, interactive and temporal mapping, geovisualization, spatial data analytics, spatial statistics, geoprocessing, geospatial analysis, and much more. In addition to content-based modules, each course features a series of online labs designed to give students hands-on experience using geospatial technologies and improve technical competency.

Ready to get started? Visit  ⁠ongeo.msu.edu to learn more.

Today, we welcomed ⁠Mehmet Eroğlu⁠, a recent graduate of the Ph.D. program at the ⁠Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences⁠ at Michigan State University.

Mehmet is a human geographer whose research focuses on power struggles in the production of landscapes, particularly in relation to workers and working-class communities. His work seeks to understand how, to what extent, and under what structural constraints and opportunities workers exercise their agency in shaping their own geographies. While his broader research interests center on the intersections of labor, place, and power rather than specific regional contexts, his current research examines the struggles of informal coal miners in Turkey.

Mehmet discussed International Workers’ Day, a celebration of labourers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labour movement and occurs every year on May 1st. To celebrate this important holiday, Mehmet encourages listeners to watch Bread and Roses, a film directed by Kenneth Loach, starring Pilar Padilla, Adrien Brody and Elpidia Carrillo.

Our sponsor for this episode is the MSU Geography Undergraduate Program. At MSU Geography, you won’t just study the world — you’ll help shape it. Ready to map your future? Visit geo.msu.edu and talk with an academic advisor today.

Today, we welcomed Leo Baldiga to the show. Leo is a dual-major PhD student in the MSU Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences and the Environmental Science and Policy Program. His research interests include the areas of Agrarian Change, Natural Resource Rights, Commons Politics, Development, and Demographic and Cultural Shifts in Southeast Asia. Leo graduated with a BA in Comparative Cultures and Politics from MSU's James Madison College in 2020 and was a Fulbright Research Fellow at Chiang Mai University in 2021, working with local community organizations on a range of topics related to land rights, healthcare access, and statelessness. In 2022-23 he worked with the Mekong School Institute of Local Knowledge on the Mekong Water Protectors citizen science program, Mekong Youth Program, Mekong Safeguard Program, and the Mekong School Digital Library. Throughout this time, he has been working on the Mekong Culture WELL (Water, Ecologies, Land, and Livelihoods) grant through the James Madison College on a household survey, ecocultural mapping, and various other projects.

Leo also discussed the importance of the founding of Earth Day on April 22, 1970. Inspired by the anti-war "teach-ins" of the 1960s, Senator Gaylord Nelson (D-WI) proposed a national teach-in on the environment after witnessing the environmental damage caused by the 1969 Santa Barbara, California oil spill. Denis Hayes, a young activist, was hired to organize the first national event. The date of April 22 was chosen to fall between spring break and final exams at most colleges and universities to maximize student participation. Today, more than a billion people in nearly 200 countries celebrate Earth Day, making it the largest secular, civic-minded day of action in the world.

If you would like to learn more about Leo’s research on agricultural drone use, please visit “Agricultural drones are taking off globally, saving farmers time and money,” an article Leo wrote for The Conversation with co-author Ben Belton. If you would like to learn more about Earth Day, visit https://www.epa.gov/earthday.

Our Sponsor: The MSU onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program

Our sponsor for this episode is the onGEO Professional GIS Certificate Program at Michigan State University. Their online Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization Certificate aims to advance the geospatial tools & technology skill-set of professionals currently working in fields that use geospatial technologies. It is also an excellent opportunity for anyone looking to revamp their current career, earn continuing-education or teaching credits, or simply learn new and marketable skills.

The online Geospatial Data Analytics & Visualization Certificate consists of four (core) fully online courses that are each delivered in 7-week sessions. These core courses cover topics ranging from map design, interactive and temporal mapping, geovisualization, spatial data analytics, spatial statistics, geoprocessing, geospatial analysis, and much more. In addition to content-based modules, each course features a series of online labs designed to give students hands-on experience using geospatial technologies and improve technical competency.

Ready to get started? Visit  ⁠ongeo.msu.edu to learn more.