Erica
Smithwick
Director of the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute,
Distinguished Professor of Geography,
Associate Director of the Institute of Energy and the Environment
Expertise:
- Sustainability & Environment
- Earth Science
Focus Areas:
- Ecology
- Climate Change
- Wildfires
In The Media:
About
- Smithwick can speak to the uptick in tempo and severity of wildfires, how it connects to climate change, and the impact on landscapes and ecosystems.
- Her research focuses on understanding the social and ecological factors that govern landscape resilience and helps to inform landscape decision-making.
- As a member of ScienceMoms, a nonpartisan group of climate scientists and mothers, Smithwick can speak about the importance of assisting parents who are concerned about their children’s planet understand the science of climate change and how they can help.
Erica Smithwick is the director of the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute and a Distinguished Professor of Geography in the Geography Department at Penn State. She also serves as the associate director of the Institute of Energy and Environment.
Through her laboratory group, LEAPS: Landscape Ecology at Penn State, Smithwick is actively involved in understanding how a wide rage of disturbances, particularly fire, affect ecosystem function at landscape scales. Her research focuses on how those disturbances influence landscape resilience and sustainability, with special attention to protected area management in Africa and the U.S.
Smithwick recently served as a Fulbright Scholar in South Africa at Rhodes University and has received numerous research awards. She is involved in several transdisciplinary projects, including Visualizing Forest Futures, which seeks to address how indigenous and Western knowledge systems can be used to address forest sustainability under climate variability, and LandscapeU, which is focused on graduate training at the food-energy-water nexus.
In The Media
From Jane to the Octonauts, children’s TV is taking on the climate crisis
from Grist September 23, 2023
We need to be talking about [the climate crisis], and programming can be a way for parents to ask questions about what kids observed in the show and see what comes up.
What’s actually in all that smoke you’re breathing
from Washington Post June 8, 2023
“We’re experiencing effects of climate change right now.”
'This is on our doorstep now': Wildfire smoke a reminder that climate change impacts human health
from Milwakee Journal Sentinel June 9, 2023
"I've studied wildfires for decades, and I'm quite alarmed by the changes that we're seeing to the wildfire systems."
Air quality in Pa. reaches historically bad levels from wildfire smoke
from PennLive June 9, 2023
“I do worry about this happening again and again.”
Opinion: Climate change is a parenting issue
from Philadelphia Inquirer September 15, 2022
"I used to look forward to the changing seasons. Now, my mind is occupied by the new threats each one brings."
from Authority Magazine October 3, 2021
"It’s so hard to make ALL the right decisions, so people should try to be 'climate better,' not 'climate perfect.' Fighting climate change is like raising a teenager — it’s confusing, complex and 95% of the time you feel like the outcome is completely out of your control. Yet, as parents we engage anyway because it’s the right thing to do. Make the right decisions on an individual level when you can, but don’t let it consume you — that doesn’t help anyone."
Take Note: Project Drawdown Conference Focuses On Top 100 Actions To Reverse Climate Change
from WPSU September 6, 2019
The People’s Forest: How the Menominee are facing climate change
from Orion December 30, 2018
In Penn State News
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Extreme Weather
From earthquakes and wildfires to hurricanes and catastrophic flooding, Penn State researchers are prepared to talk about extreme weather events and the forces that cause them.
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Climate, Energy and the Environment
The effects of human-caused climate change continue to ripple around the world. Penn State experts are at the forefront of the science behind the effects and possible solutions.