When: Wednesday, May 27, 2026 from 12 to 2 p.m.
Where: Asian Pacific American Room (MU 206) and on Zoom (hybrid)
About the event
In a time when peace and environmental sustainability can feel increasingly abstract – and ever more out of reach – we bring together participants in an intergenerational dialogue on environmental peacebuilding. Environmental pressures have intensified and reshaped the conditions for conflict and cooperation worldwide, and the environmental impacts from war have only begun to be documented. The field of environmental peacebuilding, which seeks to leverage environmental concerns to build cooperation and peace between (former) adversaries, offers new ways of thinking across disciplines, generations and areas of practice to offer tractable solutions to complex challenges, such as those exemplified in the 2026 Iran War.
This event, hosted by the Disasters in Divided Societies Lab in the Geography and Environmental Sciences Unit of the OSU College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, invites students, faculty, and staff from across the university to engage with scholars at every career stage as they reflect on the global moments that shaped their work, the contributions they are making today, and how they carry forward their sense of hope and responsibility for creating a better future. This conversation highlights a field that is not only responding to a changing world, but actively redefining how we pursue peace and sustainability together not just in theory but also in practice in the world and right here in our communities.
Structure
The event will unfold in two parts. You may attend one or both.
- Intergenerational dialogue on pressing issues bringing them into environmental peacebuilding, and offering solutions ranging from water as a vehicle for dialogue, enhancing peace processes through disaster diplomacy, and remote sensing tools for transparency and accountability in and after war.
- Lightning talks by panelists at every career stage: professor, associate professor, assistant professor, postdoctoral scholar, graduate student, and undergraduate student.
- Aaron T. Wolf, Professor
- Jamon Van Den Hoek, Associate Professor
- Laura E. R. Peters, Assistant Professor
- Alex Turgul, Postdoctoral Scholar
- Henry Pitts, PhD Candidate
- Ty Terlaak, Undergraduate Student
- Audience engagement to discuss the challenges we face in the world today, along with the commitments we would like to carry forward
- Lightning talks by panelists at every career stage: professor, associate professor, assistant professor, postdoctoral scholar, graduate student, and undergraduate student.
- Research talks
- Four early career scholars will discuss their research, cutting across geospatial and social sciences.
- Hyeonggeun Ji, Postdoctoral Scholar
- Corey Scher, Postdoctoral Scholar
- Philipp Barthelme, Postdoctoral Scholar
- Liza Goldberg, PhD Student
- Audience questions and answers
- Four early career scholars will discuss their research, cutting across geospatial and social sciences.
Logistics
- When: Wednesday, May 27 from 12-2pm
- Where: Asian Pacific American Room (MU 206) and on Zoom (hybrid)
- Bring: Your curiosity and interest
- Please register for the hybrid event
- Light refreshments will be served
About the hosts
This event is part of the Environmental Peacebuilding Association’s Path to Ottawa series.
Laura E. R. Peters, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Alex Turgul, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Scholar and Instructor
Geography and Environmental Sciences
College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences