The Department of Geography in the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences cordially invite you to the Geography Lecture Series
Date: 24 October 2024
Time: 12:00 – 13:00 (GMT+2)
06:00 – 07:00 (EST)
Venue: MS Teams
Link: Join the meeting now
Meeting ID:357 908 355 460 Passcode: hcvALW
Military Geography is an interdisciplinary field situated at the nexus of the natural and social sciences––indeed in many circles it is now called military geoscience. Military geography research plays a pivotal role in understanding the spatial dimensions of the global security landscape. Grounded in geographic principles, this field traditionally encompassed terrain and battle analysis, studies of land and resources, and geopolitical dynamics to inform military strategy, operational planning, and security policy formulation. In an era of evolving security threats and geopolitical uncertainties, military geography research has expanded in scale and scope. It would be fair to suggest that it has undergone a tectonic shift in its focus. The post–Cold War global security landscape now threatened by traditional threats (i.e., state–centric), but also an array of non–traditional threats from transnational actors (e.g., terrorist groups, crime cartels, maritime pirates, etc.) as well as the problems of failed states and the adverse and destabilizing effects of climate change. This presentation will offer a brief historical summary of military geography as well as an overview of salient contemporary issues.
Speaker Profile: Dr. Francis A. Galgano, Associate Professor, Director of Sustainability Studies, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; Department of Geography and the Environment, Villanova University
Dr. Francis A. Galgano is the founding Chair of the Department of Geography and the Environment at Villanova University. He retired from the U.S. Army in 2007 as a Lieutenant Colonel, after 27 years of service with experience in tank and cavalry units. He served in numerous locations in the United States, Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East. His last assignment was at the United States Military Academy where he was an Academy Professor and the Director of the Geography Program. Dr. Galgano is a physical geographer with expertise in coastal geomorphology, military geography, and environmental security. He has published five books, three physical geography study guides, and more than 30 professional articles focused on geographic, environmental, and military subjects. In 2011 he published (as co–editor) a book titled Modern Military Geography (Routledge). He most recently published a new book titled The Environment-Conflict Nexus: Climate Change and the Emergent National Security Landscape (Springer, 2018), which examines the geography of global security from the perspective of climate and environmental change. Dr. Galgano has been invited to speak on the subject of environmental security at Villanova, West Point, the University of Maryland, Hofstra University, and the University of Pennsylvania, as well as by organizations such as the Pew Charitable Trust Foundation and Defense Intelligence Agency (Threat Reduction Program). He is currently researching topics such as the effects of climate change on regional stability, the use of military lands, ungoverned space, environmental security, and abrupt climate change.