An expert in environmental conflict and the sociology of energy systems, Dylan Bugden has been named Boeing Distinguished Professor in Environmental Sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Bugden is an enthusiastic educator and researcher who examines environmental electoral politics, social movements, and land-use conflicts with a focus on energy infrastructure and resources, said Monica Kirkpatrick Johnson, department chair. He also studies the unequal distribution of environmental risks and benefits, particularly as they intersect with public conflicts.

“The Boeing Professorship is a genuinely transformative resource for my work and for the research being done in the new Environment and Society Laboratory,” Bugden said. “The sociology department at WSU is known nationally as the historical home of environmental sociology, and our lab will build on this legacy while expanding it in new, exciting directions.”

Working with students and other faculty in the lab, Bugden seeks to identify the social roots of environmental and energy challenges and to inform equitable structural solutions. The lab was established with support from his Boeing professorship and provides opportunities for students to develop and apply critical knowledge and skills in research, education and outreach.

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WSU Insider

America is segregated and pollution is too, says Robert D. Bullard, 2019 recipient of Washington State University’s William Julius Wilson Award for the Advancement of Social Justice. Widely known as the “father of environmental justice,” Bullard will accept the award and deliver a free, public address on Wednesday, Sept. 25, at 7:00 p.m. in the Compton Union Building (CUB) Junior Ballroom, WSU Pullman.

His address, “The Quest for Environmental, Climate, Racial, and Economic Justice in the United States,” is part of the biennial William Julius Wilson Symposium, which enables students and the wider community to honor and engage with leading figures in the promotion of social inclusiveness and diversity in social policies.

“Dr. Bullard has devoted his career to producing careful research that documents the ills of social inequality and promotes equity in all its forms,” said Justin Denney, William Julius Wilson distinguished professor of sociology at WSU and chair of the symposium organizing committee. “This is a unique opportunity for WSU students and community members alike to engage with a trailblazer and prominent thinker in social and environmental policy.”

Non-Pullman audiences can view the talk via WSU Online. It is sponsored by the Department of Sociology, College of Arts and Sciences, Office of the Provost, Office of Equity and Diversity, Pre-Law Resource Center, and others.

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WSU Insider

The Amazon Catalyst Program at Washington State University has awarded nearly $20,000 in grants to two teams comprised of research faculty and students from varied university disciplines and locations.

Team Cross-Cultural Optics and team Virtual Reality 360 received grants for their innovative solutions to specific problems posed by Amazon. Launched in 2018, the collaborative program between Amazon and WSU funds projects with potential global impact. This year, applicants were asked to consider the themes of urban transportation and computational social science and submit innovative ideas that have the possibility for big change in these areas.

Team Cross-Cultural Optics, led by Julie Kmec, professor of sociology, was awarded a grant to develop a virtual reality environment that enables female engineers based in the U.S. to explore engineering spaces elsewhere in the world that have higher levels of engineering participation by women. In the U.S., women hold 24% of engineering degrees but represent only 18% of the engineering labor force. Cross-cultural Optics aims to create a visual world and set of narratives that will provide users an opportunity to experience the stories of other engineers in countries across the globe where women represent a higher percentage of the engineering student body and workforce; enabling them to share testimonies, seek advice, learn from others’ experiences, and problem solve.

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WSU Insider

There is a lot of litter on our planet, but it hasn’t always been that way.

For most of human history, people made stuff out of things they found in nature. They might make tools out of rocks or sticks. These things break down and become part of the soil again.

It wasn’t until the invention of new materials, like plastic, that we started creating more litter. In fact, along with the rise of these new materials came the word “litterbug.”

That’s what I found out from my friend Erik Johnson. He’s a sociologist at Washington State University who is really curious about culture, the ways people interact and live together, and how that shapes a human being.

If you were eating a candy bar and the wind blew the wrapper out of your hand, you might chase after it and find a trash bin. But not everyone will make the same decision. They might let the wrapper blow away—or just toss it on the ground.

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Dr. Universe