Marfa Ballroom Lecture Series: Kathleen Shafer

Ballroom Marfa is launching a new lecture series with a talk by Kathleen Shafer, a doctoral student in UT Geography and The Environment.  Shafer's visual work explores and documents airfields, and her research on this subject is what brought her back into academia. She is especially interested in Marfa’s military history and the later repurposing of spaces by Judd. She will be writing a dissertation about the place and experience of Marfa, and is interested in parallel concepts of place and space between both geographic and artistic thought. Please join us for this special event, generously hosted by Marfa Book Company. Talk begins at 6 pm July, 12 2011 

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http://ballroommarfa.org/archive/event/lecture-series-kathleen-shafer/#event-release

The Arab Spring's looming refugee crisis - Chris Ulack

Chris Ulack is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Geography and the Environment at the University of Texas at Austin posted an article on Foreign Policy website about the looming refugee crisis resulting from the Arab Spring.  Ulack focuses his research on refugee issues in the U.S. and the Middle East. The article is available on Foreign Policy's website.


The Arab Spring’s looming refugee crisis by Chris Ulack | The Middle East Channel

PhD student Shafer starting research in Marfa, TX

PhD student Kathleen Shafer was the first to depart to her field site this summer in Marfa, TX. Shafer, who holds degrees in Photography and Anthropology, started in the department last fall. Having had a few weeks to settle into her research, she writes:

"There is a bird that chirps outside my house that sounds exactly like the green pelican in Angry Birds. It is hilarious. For the most part, it is a quiet town. Trains pass through about four times a day, more on Saturday, and for a brief period the town is divided in two - north of the train, and south of the train. People say hello when they pass you in the street, or raise their hand in acknowledgment when they pass you in a car. The light and the colors are wondrous, and everyone knows each other."

AAG welcomes Joy Adams

Joy Adams, GAGS Alumna, has joined the AAG staff as Senior Researcher and was featured in the current issue of the AAG Newsletter. She received a B.A. in geography from The University of Texas at Austin in 1994 and completed her Ph.D. in geography at UT-Austin in 2006. She wrote her dissertation on German-themed heritage festivals in Central Texas, reflecting her research specializations in ethnic geography and geotourism in North America.

Following Quinoa in Bolivia

Graduate student Jon Gehrig will be conducting field research for his Master's thesis in the Bolivian Altiplano this summer. He is investigating the linkages between quinoa production and consumption in domestic and international markets.

Jon leaves next Tuesday, May 10th for Bolivia and is posting everyday. You can follow his work directly at his blog, BoliviaTravels.