jonathanwburton.com

My research interests are centered on the intersection of people, power, and landscapes . I integrate my background in Geology and Physical Geography, Geospatial Science, Remote Sensing, and Critical Social Theory to understand environmental systems and change. I share a political commitment with the cognate disciplines of Political Ecology and Critical Physical Geography (CPG) to understand how material landscapes are influenced and shaped by socio-political actions and power. This has profound impacts on the types of questions and motivations of research, as well as the knowledge politics of who is included in the scientific process.

Glacial Lake Outburst Floods

Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) are increasingly capturing the attention of glaciologists, governments, and mountain populations. Mountainous areas are among the most rapidly changing landscapes due to climate change and understanding the emerging related hazards is preeminent. I use CPG to understand the social production of landscapes in southern Chile, integrating an understanding of how longer histories of colonialism, development, and neoliberal governance (among others) have each contributed to the production of disasters.

Glacier Dynamics

Glaciers are recognized for their water storage capacity, generating concern for the consequences of glacial retreat and water availability and access. Integrating interdisciplinary approaches can help to understand a more holistic account of this dynamic, a framing articulated by Sarmiento (2017) as 'Montology' - or understanding the complex and transdisciplinary mountain scapes and the downstream impacts.

Additional Research Contributions

Sea-Level Rise and (mal)adaptation

Power dynamics and production of space in Hawaii (in production)

Post-Fire Fluvial Channel Evolution

Long-term geomorphological evolution of a sub-alpine stream channel ten years after a wildfire (in press)

Socio-Hydrology of Indonesia

Flood dynamics and land-use change of Indonesia (in production)