The Department of Geography and Environmental Management (GEM) is one of the leading geography departments in Canada with a strong commitment to the discovery, dissemination, and application of geographic knowledge focused on the complex interactions within and between the human and natural environments. The Department embraces a three-fold mission of excellence in research, excellence in research-led teaching in all undergraduate and graduate degree programmes, and celebration of, and respect for all, members of the Department, Faculty of Environment, and the University of Waterloo.
Fundamentally, our research falls into four broad areas:
We also have several cross-cutting themes that intersect with each of these areas (e.g., climate change). GEM’s commitment to teaching and learning is through a comprehensive set of offerings at the undergraduate level and at the graduate level. Our collaboration with other members of the University, within the Faculty, across the University and with our sister department at Wilfrid Laurier University, demonstrates our commitments to both disciplinarity and interdisciplinarity.
See the key people responsible for our undergraduate and graduate programs, and a list of faculty members at GEM and their teaching and research interests.
