UWM’s Academic Adventurers is a continuing series of informal Friday afternoon programs that give members of the UWM community the opportunity to hear about their colleagues’ adventures abroad and afield.
Talks begin at 3 p.m. in the American Geographical Society Library, third floor, east wing of the Golda Meir Library. Free and open to the public!
For more information or to arrange for special needs, email agsl@uwm.edu, or call 414-229-6282.
To receive email updates about Academic Adventure lectures, send an email to agsl@uwm.edu with the subject: Academic Adventure updates.
Upcoming Academic Adventurers Lectures
March 8, 2024 – Dr. Robert Schneider, Professor, Department of Architecture and Urban Planning. “Pedestrian Safety at Night: Illuminating the Problem and Strategies for Safer Streets.“
Academic Adventurers Lectures 1997-present
November 17, 2023 – Brett Ketter, Senior Information Processing Consultant, Department of Geosciences. “From Quakes to Wines: My Unusual Path in Academia”
October 27, 2023 – Dr. Michael J Pauers, Associate Professor, College of General Studies. “The Geography of Taxonomy, or What is Type Locality, Anyway?”
March 3, 2023 – Dr. Sharity Basset, American Indian Student Center Manager, Visiting Assistant Professor, Women & Gender Studies: “Mapping Land History: Collaborating with the Oglala Lakota Nation on Land Research.”
February 10, 2023 – Dr. Alison Donnelly, Associate Professor, Graduate Program Chair, Department of Geography: “Monitoring Downer Woods by people and satellites”
November 11, 2022 – Dr. Gerlinde Höbel, Associate Professor, Biological Sciences Department: “Studying Frog Calls & Colors in Central & North America”
October 21, 2022 – Dr. David Pacifico, Director, Emile H. Mathis Art Gallery and UWM Art Collection: “Deciphering the Middle Sechín: Survey, GIS, and Archaeology in Peru”
November 5, 2021 – Adam Jussel, UWM Dean of Students, “Curating the entrance to Hostile Terrains & the data behind it”
October 8, 2021 – Dr. David Pacifico, Director, Emile H. Mathis Art Gallery and UWM Art Collection “Curating Hostile Terrains“
Feb. 21, 2020
John Janssen, UWM School of Freshwater Sciences
Kimberly Beckmann, UWM Peck School of the Arts
Brennan Dow, Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources
“Milwaukee Harbor: Mapping Unseen Underwater Habitats and Highways”
September 20, 2019
Don Hanlon, Emeritus Professor of Architecture
“The Case of Turpan, China: How to Destroy a Culture”
March 1, 2019
Alan Magayne-Roshak, Senior Photographer, UWM Photo Services (Retired)
“Covering the Campus: 40+ Years of Photos”
February 15, 2018
Hilary Snow, Honors College Lecturer in Art History and Asian Studies
“Navigating Tokyo: The Pleasures of Research”
September 29, 2018
Dr. Chia Vang, UWM Department of History
“The Power of Experiential Learning: Reflections from a Decade of Leading Short-term Programs to Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam”
March 2, 2018
Julie Bowles, Assistant Professor of Geosciences
“Journey to the Center of the Earth: Scientific Drilling in the Indian Ocean.”
February 9, 2018
Joseph Mougel, Associate Professor, Peck School of the Arts “From Silver Crystals to Landscape Pixels.”
Description of presentation
November 10, 2017
Amanda Seligman, Professor of History
“Exploring Chicago’s Streets with New Tools and Old: Using the Archive and the Internet to Reconstruct Problems and Solutions in the Modern City.”
Monday, October 2, 2017
Dr. Richard Francaviglia, Geographer & Historian, Willamette University, Salem, Oregon
“Academic Adventures in South America’s Atacama Desert.”
March 10, 2017
Michael Martin, Adjunct Professor, Urban Studies, UWM “Incidents of Travel in Cuba: One Academic’s Quest to Build Bridges in a Post-Cold War Era”
February 10, 2017
Julie Kline, Associate Director, Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, UWM “I continue speaking my language: filming and producing a documentary sequel on the Maya Movement in Guatemala”
October 21, 2016
Ann Hanlon, Head of Digital Collections and Initiatives UWM Libraries & Marcy Bidney, Curator, AGSL “Discovering Wisconsin and the World in the Digital Public Library of America”
September 23, 2016
Gabrielle Verdier, Professor Emerita, Department of French UWM & Juan-Marcos Rodríguez-Luis “The Great Red Island: Rediscovering Madagascar”
March 11, 2016
Liam Callanan, Associate Professor, English, UWM “Bird of Paradise (Lost): Milwaukee Aviator Lester J. Maitland’s Historic First Flight to Hawaii”
February 19, 2016
Anika Wilson, Associate Professor, Africology, UWM “Vanishing Hitchhiker, Vanishing Gods: Religion, Ecology, and Identity in Southern Africa”
October 23, 2015
Anne Basting, Professor, Theater, Peck School of the Arts, UWM “How to See Beyond Age: The Story of the Creative Trust and a Remarkable Exploration of Women’s Lives Across Generations”
September 25, 2015
Janet Padway, Assistant Director, Golda Meir Libraries, UWM “Libraries in the Land of a Thousand Hills: Rwanda”
March 6, 2015
Ingrid Jordt, Associate Professor, Anthropology, UW Milwaukee “Research in Risky Places: Fieldwork in Burma”
February 20, 2015
Stephen Dornbos, Associate Professor, of Geosciences, UW Milwaukee: “Exploring the Early Animal Fossil Record in SW China and Western Mongolia”
November 14, 2014
Jean Creighton, Director, Manfred Olson Planetarium, UW Milwaukee: “Adventure in the Stratosphere”
September 26, 2014
William Huxhold, Professor, Urban Planning, UW Milwaukee: “GIS Comes to Kazakhstan”
March 7, 2014
Margaret Fraiser, Associate Professor, UWM Department of Geosciences, “A Global Geologic Exploration of Life After Earth’s Largest Mass Extinction.”
February 14, 2014
Tim Hathaway, Assistant Director for China Initiatives, Center for International Education, “Falling In and Out of Love With China: An American Voice in China’s Print Media.”
January 31, 2014
Frederick Nelson, Adjunct Professor, UWM Department of Geography and AGS Councilor, “Many are Cold, but Few are Frozen: Permafrost and Life in the North.”
September 27, 2013
Woonsup Choi, Assistant Professor, UWM Department of Geography, “Restoration of Small Waterways in Seoul, Korea .”
March 8, 2013
Arijit Sen, Associate Professor, UWM Department of Architecture, “Teaching American Cultural Landscapes: Engaging Students in the Thurston Woods Neighborhood, Milwaukee.”
February 8, 2013
John Reisel, Associate Professor, UWM College of Engineering and Applied Science, “Water for Rural Guatemala: UWM Engineers Without Borders in Action.”
December 14, 2012
David Garman, Dean, UWM School of Freshwater Sciences, “Water Around the World: Myths, Mysteries and Machinations.”
October 12, 2012
Rebecca Holderness, Associate Professor, Theater Department, “Geography, Real and Imaginary, in a Setting of King Lear.”
M arch 2, 2012
Marcus Filippello, Department of History, UWM
“Sub-Saharan Africa: Research in Benin.”
February 10, 2012
Nan Kim, Department of History, UWM
“Korean Cosmopolitanisms.”
November 4, 2011
Lindsay McHenry, Department of Geosciences, UWM
“Bones and Stones: Using the Volcanic Record of Northern Tanzania to Contstrain Hominid Activities at Olduvai Gorge.”
September 23, 2011
Larry Kuiper , French, Italian, and Comparative Literature, UWM
“The Southern Cantal: Exploring a Rural Crossroads in France.”
April 29, 2011
Rama Prasada Mohapatra, Dept of Geography, UWM and Abhay Mhoapatra
“The Adivasis of Eastern Ghats, India.”
April 8, 2011
Theodore von Briesen, AGSL, UWM
“A Peek at the Puzzles of Persia: Tales of Some Ordinary Iranians in Two Eras.”
February 25, 2011
Peter Lor, School of Information Studies, UWM
“Jet Lag Comes with the Job: Experiences as IFLA’s Secretary General.”
December 3, 2010
Anna Mansson McGinty, Women’s Studies/Geography, UWM
“Blue and Yellow Islam.”
October 29, 2010
Chukuka Enwemeka, Dean, College of Health Sciences, UWM
“Illuminating Health Care in Brazil.”
September 24, 2010
Stefan Schnitzer, Biological Sciences, UWM
“Nature is Green in Tooth and Claw: A Photographic Journey into Tropical Ecology.”
April 9, 2010
Dr. Norman Lasca, Professor Emeritus, Geosciences, UWM
“The Backside of Antarctica: From the Falklands to Australia.”
March 5, 2010
Val Klump, Director & Sr. Scientist, Great Lakes Water Institute
“Adventures of a Great Lakes Limnologist.”
February 12, 2010
Jim Lubner, Education Coordinator, UW Sea Grant Advisory Services
“The Denis Sullivan in the Bahamas: Connecting Wisconsin Students to Sea & Sail.”
November 13, 2009
Brendan Vierk, M.S. Candidate and advisor, Department of Geography, UWM
“Exploring the Karst Forests of Puerto Rico: Their Exotic Landforms and Their Regrowth.”
September 18, 2009
Dr. Jeffrey Merrick, Professor of History and Associate Dean of Humanities, UWM
“Life and Death in the Streets of 18th Century Paris.”
March 27, 2009
Jacques du Plessis, Professor, School of Information Studies, UWM
“Visual Insights into Africa: Research and Experience Around HIV and Poverty.”
February 6, 2009
Krystyna Matusiak, Digital Collections Librarian, UWM Libraries
“Building the First Digital Archive in Mongolia.”
October 24, 2008
Nigel Rothfels, Director of Undergraduate Research, UWM
“In Search of Germans, Butterflies, and History in Papua New Guinea”
October 3, 2008
William Roselle, Library Director, Retired, Golda Meir Library
“A Moving Experience: The Historic Move of the AGS Library 30 Years Ago”
September 19, 2008
Ewa Barczyk, Director of Libraries; Christopher Baruth, Curator, AGSL; Neal Pease, Professor of History [all UWM] “Georgia on My Mind: How Four Academics Absorbed the Culture, Toured the Countryside, Tasted the Wine, Opened an Exhibition and Fled the Russian Tanks”
April 18, 2008
Prof. Caen Thomason-Redus, Flute Faculty, Music Department, Peck School of the Arts
“Flute Music of the African Diaspora”
February 15, 2008
Prof. Diane Kitchen, Film Department, Peck School of the Arts
“The Ashaninka People of Peru, Issues and Updates”
November 16, 2007
Prof. Bettina Arnold, Anthropology Department
“Memory Maps and the European Iron Age: The Landscape of Ancestors”
October 26, 2007
Prof. Joe Austin, History Department
“Youth Culture, Urban Space and Graffiti Art”
September 28, 2007
Prof. Ellen Amster, History Department
“Saints and the Islamic City: Looking for Sacred Space in Fes, Morocco ”
March 30, 2007
Prof. Timothy Ehlinger, Biological Sciences Department
and Conservation and Environmental Sciences Program
“Environment, Economics and Culture: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development in Romania”
February 16, 2007
Prof. Anne Hansen, History Department
“A View from the Top of a Sugar-palm Tree: Buddhist Reflections from Cambodia”
December 8, 2006
Ewa Barczyk, Director, UWM Libraries, and
Prof. Neal Pease, History Department
“Middle Age Couriers: How Medieval Polish Manuscripts Turned Up in Milwaukee, and How They Got Back Home to Poland”
November 10, 2006
Prof. Dick Blau, Film Department
“The Goat Dance of Skyros”
October 6, 2006
Prof. Abbas Ourmazd, Physics Department
“Wanderlust: Source of Wisdom or Cause of Madness?”
April 21, 2006
Steve Miller, UWM Libraries, and lecturer, School of Information Studies
“Trip to Berlin”
February 3, 2006
Prof. Aims McGuinness, History Department
“A Mystery in the Archives: Researching the History of U. S. Imperialism in Panama”
November 4, 2005
Prof. Johannes Britz, Dean, School of Information Studies
“Africa as a Knowledge Society: the Road Ahead”
September 30, 2005
Dr. Carlos Santiago, UWM Chancellor
“Economic Development and the Indigenous Question in Latin America — A Romp through the Western Amazon.”
April 22, 2005
Chris Baruth, Curator, American Geographical Society Library
“A Voyage from Moscow to St. Petersburg on the Czar´s Waterways”
February 25, 2005
Prof. Bruce Fetter, History Department
“The World of International Conferences”
December 10, 2004
Prof. John Isbell, Geosciences Department; Pete Flaig, and Zelenda Koch, Geoscience graduate students
“Two Months on Ice: The Adventures of UWM Geologists in Antarctica”
October 15, 2004
Prof. David Buck, Department of History
“Yunnan: Stories from China’s Most Diverse Province”
April 2, 2004
Prof. Mike Utzinger, Architecture
“Pedestrian Cities in Holland & Northern Italy”
February 27, 2004
Prof. Kristin Ruggiero, Department of History
“Cuba in the 21st Century”
November 21, 2003
Prof. Nik Heynen, Department of Geography
“Guatemalan Streets, Guatemalan Lives”
October 10, 2003
Prof. Philip Shashko, Department of History
“St. Petersburg’s 300th Anniversary: the City as a Window to the West and the East”
March 14, 2003
Caroline Joyce, Jason Project
“The Jason Project Visits the Channel Islands: a Twisted Plan”
February 14, 2003
Prof. Joyce Kirk, Department of Africology
“South African Update: Past and Present”
October 25, 2002
Prof. Jean Hudson, Department of Anthropology
“Reed Boat Fishermen of Peru: Modern and Ancient”
September 27, 2002
Prof. Marilu Knode, INOVA
“An Art Trek through Korea”
April 12, 2002
Prof. Judith Kenny, Geography / Urban Studies Departments
“Revisiting Milwaukee’s Old Polish Neighborhoods: Immigrants, Workers and Home-Builders”
March 15, 2002
Prof. Swarnjit S. Arora, Department of Economics
“Mera Sona Punjab — Cradle of Civilization”
February 15, 2002
Prof. Patrick Bellegarde-Smith, Department of Africology
“The (Re)Presentation of Deities in the African Diasporic Discourse”
December 7, 2001
Dr. Russell Cuhel, Great Lakes Water Institute
“A Great Lakes Research Expedition”
November 9, 2001
Prof. Wolfgang Laufer, Department of Music
“Around the World with the Fine Arts Quartet”
October 19, 2001
Prof. Emerita Martine Meyer, French, Italian and Comparative Literature
“The Road to Morocco (and Tunisia)”
September 14, 2001
Prof. Michael Wnuk, Civil Engineering and Mechanics
“Cassini’s Journey to Saturn”
April 20, 2001
Peter Watson-Boone, Director, Golda Meir Library
“UWM’s Slovenian Musical Connection”
March 9, 2001
Profs. John Lane Hall and Lisa Moline, Visual Art
“From Los Angeles to London: Prints in Public Places”
February 9, 2001
Prof. Norm Lasca, Department of Geosciences
“Beijing to Moscow via Ulaanbaatar: the Trans-Siberian Railroad”
December 15, 2000
Prof. Neal Pease, Department of History
“Poland, Land of the White Eagle”
November 10, 2000
Gareth Shellman, Sr. Outreach Spec., Institute of World Affairs
“Historic & Cultural Germany: Exploring the Heart to Discover the Soul”
October 20, 2000
Prof. Jane Waldbaum, Department of Art History
“Down and Dirty: Archaeological Excavations at Ashkelon, Israel”
September 15, 2000
Prof. Andrea Stone, Department of Art History
“Images on the Landscape: Exploring Rock Art in Central America”
April 14, 2000
Prof. Gil S. Snyder, Department of Architecture and Urban Planning
“April in Paris”
March 10, 2000
Prof. Cheryl S. Ajirotutu, Department of Anthropology
“Women, Work and Technology: Cultural Traditions in Western Africa”
February 18, 2000
Prof. Cynthia E. Poulson, Department of Theatre and Dance
“Building Bridges: Milwaukee to Shanghai – Travels with the Professional Theatre Training Program”
December 10, 1999
Prof. Lawrence R. Hoey, Department of Art History
“Culture and Creativity in the Parish Churches of Medieval England”
November 12, 1999
Prof. Michael J. Day, Department of Geography
“Signs of Belize”
October 8, 1999
Prof. Portia E. Cobb, Department of Film
“Places Left Behind: Blue Africa”
September 17, 1999
Prof. Alexandra Dimitroff, School of Library and Information Science
“Living and Teaching in Moscow”
April 23, 1999
Prof. Emeritus Fred Landis, Engineering
“China in the Year of Tiananmen Square”
January 29, 1999
Prof. Anton Treuer, Department of History
“The Wisconsin Indian Story”
March 19, 1999
Prof. John Gleeson, Ethnic Studies
“Landscapes of Ireland”
February 19, 1999
Prof. Emeritus Donn Haglund, Department of Geography
“Anchorage to Nome: the Iditarod Dog Sled Races”
November 13, 1998
Prof. Thomas Hubka, Architecture and Urban Planning
“Eighteenth Century Wooden Synagogues of Eastern Europe”
October 16, 1998
Prof. Abbas Hamdani, Department of History
“Mosques and Minarets, Medieval and Modern: Development of Islamic Architectural Style”
April 17, 1998
Prof. F. Xavier Baron, English and Comparative Literature
“Notting Hill Carnival, London”
March 27, 1998
Prof. Julio Rodriguez-Luis, Spanish and Portuguese
“Chile’s Crazy Geography”
February 13, 1998
Prof. William Washabaugh, Department of Anthropology
“Flamenco Dancing in Spain”
November 14, 1997
Prof. Donald Hanlon, Architecture
“Adventures in Rajasthan”
October 10, 1997
Prof. Richard Blau, Department of Film
“Balkan Ecstasies: Music, Dance and Culture in Northern Greece”