FACULTY HIGHLIGHT Name: Fausto O. Sarmiento Position: Professor, Department of Geography & Director, Neotropical Montology Collaboratory Department: Geography Dr. Fausto O. Sarmiento, a full professor in the geography department, is an internationally recognized leader of montology research. He directs the Neotropical Montology Collaboratory, a research platform that incubates applied research on tropical mountains' conservation with development. As global citizens in a world moving toward the achievement of the UN Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), professor Sarmiento believes his students “must become critical thinkers in aligning their values with those of their neighbors, so that communities and countries alike can advance in enjoying the inheritance of landscape services afforded by our ancestors.” Towards this goal, he encourages his students to be geo-literate agents of change by introducing them to the ethics and morals of working toward the greater good with sound environmental action. Professor Sarmiento's various courses delve into a range of studies, from analyzing the hybrids of nature and culture to understanding climate change and the sustainability of regenerative development. He hopes his students can always use the three "I's" to guide environmental cognition - interconnections, interactions, and implications of their productive socio-ecological lifescapes. He feels his students need to be curious and to “liberate themselves from strict molds of traditional thinking and embrace, critically and freely, the necessary steps to build a better society”. Click here to learn more about Professor Sarmiento
