Stuart Hamilton
Research Interest
The study of land use change is inherently geographic. The basis for almost all LUCC(Land Use Cover Change) analysis is EOS (Earth Observing Systems) and is investigated by geographers with RS and GIS expertise. The EOS shed light on the magnitude and location of change but a wider geographic approach is required to discover the driving and mitigating factors of LUCC I believe that the importance of combining EOS with other disciplines and databases is paramount if society is to address the grand environmental challenges of our time. EOS have provided geographers with the understanding of environmental land use changes, yet for our society to meet the current environmental challenges we must build upon this knowledge to improve our understanding of vulnerabilities and risks associated with environmental change and develop scientific mitigation strategies which result in equitable socio-economic development. These are the principles that drive my research into tropical land use change in the developing world. Only by documenting land use change, investigating the inputs driving land use change, and analyzing the results of the change, can some of the major environmental questions of our time be answered.
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Teaching Philosophy
The goal for me is not only to answer the student question of today but also to empower the student to answer a more complex question that will arise tomorrow. For example, you cannot teach how to convert data from every reference system to every other reference system and it is not always possible, but what students can learn is the key questions to ask at each step and how and where to find the answers to the problem. I teach what I research and I research what I teach. Nothing appears to motivate students more than conducting research projects in class guided by the professor that generate real results that lead to reports, grants, or even publications.
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Selected Publications
Hamilton, Stuart E. and Friess, Daniel A. (2018) Global carbon stocks and potential emissions due to mangrove deforestation from 2000 to 2012. vol. 8. no. 3. pp. 240-244. Nature Climate Change.
Web Address
Hamilton, Stuart E., Lovette, John, Cordove, Mercy and Millones, Marco (2017) The Carbon Holdings of Northern Ecuador's Mangrove Forests. vol. In-Press. no. 107. pp. 54-71. Annals of the Association of American Geographers.
Web Address
Buntaine, Mark T., Hamilton, Stuart E. and Millones, Marco (2015) Titling community land to prevent deforestation: An evaluation of a best-case program in Morona-Santiago, Ecuador. vol. 33. no. July. pp. 32–43. Global Environmental Change/Elsevier.
Web Address
Hamilton, Stuart E. and Casey, Daniel (2016) Creation of a high spatiotemporal resolution global database of continuous mangrove forest cover for the 21st Century (CGMFC-21): A big-data fusion approach (v2). vol. 25. no. 6. pp. 725-736. Global Ecology and Biogeography.
Web Address
Hamilton, Stuart E. (2015) No Evidence That Shrimp Aquaculture Is Responsible for Minimal Mangrove Deforestation. vol. 65. no. 5. pp. 457. American Institute of Biological Sciences.
Web Address
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Current Courses
Fall 2019GEOG 320 CARTOGRAPHIC VISUALIZATION (Fall 2019)Theory and application of cartographic principles and practices to advanced cartographic design. Lectures emphasize theory and principles. Laboratory provides practical experience in designing maps. Prerequisite: GEOG 219. Two hours lecture, two hours laboratory per week.GEOG 522 READINGS IN GEOGRAPHY (Fall 2019)Permits in-depth study of a selected topic to be indicated on student’s transcript. May be taken twice for credit under different subtitles. Intended for seniors with 18 or more hours in geography. May be offered for undergraduate or graduate credit. Prerequisite: Consent of department review committee.GEOG 630 GIS & PUBLIC ADMIN (Fall 2019)Examines practical approaches for incorporating geographic information systems (GIS) technology into a public administration setting. Discusses implementation strategies, cost-benefit analyses, and strategies for overcoming technical and organizational boundaries. Case studies illustrate how public officials have successfully applied GIS to their specific needs. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, POSC 540, and GEOG 419 or GEOG 519. Three hours per week.Spring 2020GEOG 640 GIS CO-OP EXPERIENCE (Spring 2020)A directed field study program which provides students with an opportunity to apply GIS skills acquired in the classroom to real-world projects in the community. Additionally, a weekly seminar discussion gives participants a chance to peer-review the co-operative projects as well as receive expert guidance. Students are under the supervision of an advisor form the GIS faculty while participating in a short-term experience program in a business or government agency. Prerequisites: GEOG 619 and GEOG 630. Six hours per week.
- Awards/Honors
Fellow of the Royal Geographical SocietyPresented by Royal Geographical Society
Prometeo FellowPresented by SENESCYT
Oustanding Doctoral Graduate Student AwardPresented by The University of Southern Mississippi
- Professional Memberships
Association of American Geographershe Association of American Geographers (AAG) is a nonprofit scientific and educational society founded in 1904. For more than 100 years the AAG has contributed to the advancement of geography. Its members from more than 60 countries share interests in the theory, methods, and practice of geography, which they cultivate through the AAG's Annual Meeting, scholarly journals (Annals of the Association of American Geographers, The Professional Geographer, the AAG Review of Books and GeoHumanities), and the online AAG Newsletter.
The AAG promotes discussion among its members and with scholars in related fields, in part through the activities of its affinity groups and more than 60 specialty groups. The meetings and activities of our regional divisions provide the opportunity to network with colleagues near you.
Who are AAG members?
AAG members are geographers and related professionals who work in the public, private, and academic sectors. They work in a wide range of careers, as community college instructors, federal, state and local government employees, planners, cartographers, scientists, non-profit workers, entrepreneurs, businesspeople, elementary and secondary educators, graduate students, retirees, university administrators, and so on from all over the world.
More than 300 volunteer leaders serve on our AAG Council and our many other committees and groups. You can join the AAG as an individual member or as a corporate organization.
Global Land ProjectThe Global Land Project is a joint research project for land systems for the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) and the International Human Dimensions Programme (IHDP). The Global Land Project Science Plan represents the research framework for the coming decade for land systems. This development of a research strategy is designed to better integrate the understanding of the coupled human-environment system. These integrated science perspectives reflect the recognition of the fundamental nature of how human activities on land are affecting feedbacks to the Earth System and the response of the Human-Environment System to Global Change. The Global Land Project Science Plan has been defined by scientists sponsored by the IGBP and the IHDP.
This has no formal membership, I partake freely.
Royal Society of GeographersThe Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) is the UK's learned society and professional body for geography, founded in 1830. We are a world leader in advancing geography and supporting its practitioners in the UK and across the world.
- Licensures and Certifications
GISP (GIS Professional), GISCI (GIS Certificate Institute)It is the policy of the GIS Certification Institute (GISCI) that the fields of practice for geographic information systems (GIS) is a legitimate profession separate from other fields of practice that may define geospatial professions. Certified Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Professionals (GISPs) must show proficiency in three areas; 1.) Educational Achievement, 2.) Professional Experience, and 3.) Contributions to the Profession. Achievement must be claimed and self-documented by the applicant in each of these areas.
- Grants and Sponsored Research
CNH-L: The Potential for Aquaculture in Lake Victoria and Implications for Wild Fisheries and Fish Commodity Markets, National Science Foundatiom
Expanding the Reach of Impact Evaluation, USAID Global Development Lab
21st Century Mangrove Loss in Indonesia, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
- Presentations
The Potential for Aquaculture in Lake Victoria and Implications for Wild Fisheries and Fish Commodity MarketsSeptember, 1 2017Royal Society of Geographers Annual International Conference, London, UKhttp://conference.rgs.org/AC2017/1bee830f-3188-4d21-b171-371ef7a045b5 Aquaculture (farmed fish) surpassed wild capture fisheries as the major source of fish production to the world in 2014. On one hand, aquaculture promises to fill the gap left by declining wild fisheries and to provide the world with a reliable, affordable form of fish. On the other hand, aquaculture can have negative consequences such as pollution, inequitable distribution of benefits, and ecological impacts on the wild fish harvested to produce fish feed. These tradeoffs are becoming increasingly evident around Lake Victoria. In the face of stagnating wild fisheries in Lake Victoria and a surging human population around its shores, aquaculture may improve food and livelihood security in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. An international team of researchers (NSF 1518532) are investigating the potential for Lake Victoria-based aquaculture and the implications for wild fisheries, global and local supplies of fish, and regional economic development. Researchers are currently investigating how global demand for fish affects local markets and the fishers who supply them, how the distribution of benefits from aquaculture can be made more equitable, and how building aquaculture facilities in and near lakes affects the ecology and economics of wild fisheries. This work fills a critical gap in knowledge about the links between aquaculture and wild fish, and it will increase understanding of how emerging markets in developing countries can be structured to promote sustainability and equitability.
The Development of Key Environmental Datasets for Fisheries Institutions on Lake VictoriaApril 2018Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Tampa, FLhttps://aag.secure-abstracts.com/AAG%20Annual%20Meeting%202018/abstracts-gallery/14335 Aquaculture surpassed wild capture fisheries as the primary source of global seafood in 2014. On the one hand, aquaculture promises to fill the gap left by declining wild fisheries and to provide the world with a reliable and affordable protein. On the other hand, aquaculture can have negative consequences such as pollution, inequitable distribution of economic benefits, and ecological impacts. These tradeoffs are becoming increasingly evident around Lake Victoria. In the face of stagnating wild fisheries in Lake Victoria and a surging human population around its shores, aquaculture has been proposed a means to improve food security and enhance local livelihoods in the Lake Victoria Basin. An international team of researchers (NSF 1518532) are investigating the potential for Lake Victoria based aquaculture and the implications for wild fisheries, global and local supplies of fish, and regional economic development. Researchers are currently developing core environmental datasets such as a high-resolution bathymetric map, shoreline, and strata to support this endeavor. These datasets will help power the research into the links between aquaculture and wild fish in Lake Victoria, which in turn will increase understanding of how aquaculture in emerging markets can be structured to promote both environmental sustainability and economic equitability.
When Space Beats Time: decomposing and interpreting temporal and spatial components after hurricane eventsMay 201513th International Conference of GeoComputation, Dallas, TXIn this paper, we seek focus on a few cases and examine the conditions by which spatial models become better predictors than temporal models in terms of model accuracy/performance
- Artistic Highlights
- Service Activities and Community Relations
To help empower research in the developing world, I serve as an editor for open access journals that publish geographic research. From 2015 to 2017, I served as a section editor for SpringerOpen, and since 2017 I have served as a section editor for 4-Open (https://www.4open-sciences.org/about-the-journal/editorial-board).
I try to give one to two days per month to outside community service activities. During my the last few years I have conducted forest loss assessment for Health in Harmony who is a non-profit that provides medical care in Kalimantan, Indonesia in return for forest credits. Additional non-profit service includes helping install a rural well in Manabí province in Ecuador and teaching GIS to fisheries professionals around Lake Victoria in Africa.
- External Collaboration Highlights
I visit and work closely with three fisheries centers on Lake Victoria in East Africa. They are TAFIRI in Mwanza Tanzania, NaFIRRI in Jinja Uganda, and KMFRI in Kisumu Kenya. I have taken students twice to work in this region and will visit again this year. I have a GIS laboratory here that I teach in with researchers from all over the world https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1518532.
- Press Releases
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Ecuador Awards $83K Fellowship to SU Professor
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
- Awards/Honors
