We take a moment to chat with one of our undergraduates, Lauren Wunderlich, who will be graduating in the fall. Lauren has not only achieved academic excellence in the department, receiving the Kohn Award this spring, but has also served as the department’s Communications Intern for two years. We asked Lauren a few questions to get to know how she found the department, what courses impacted her education, and what working for the department was like.
How did you find Geography and what resonated with you about our field?
Entering UW-Madison as a freshman in 2022, I knew as much about geography as the next person. I thought it was the study of state capital and navigation; however, I was soon proven wrong when I took Geography 101, Introduction to Human Geography, as a part of my Freshman Interest Group (FIG). With some convincing by graduate student Vignesh Ramachandran, the TA for the course, who told me my interests in politics and data science could serve me well in a career in geography, I signed up for another human geography course and a cartography course for that spring.
From there, I completely fell in love with geography. I have always had a multidisciplinary way of thinking though problems that involve considering all perspectives and methods, which has served me well in geography. Growing up, my friends used to joke that I had an ‘internal GPS’ and ‘a unique way of recognizing places’, and I guess my spatial nature has also allowed me to thrive in this discipline. Now nearing the end of my undergraduate years in both Human Geography and Cart/GIS, I can confidently say I have many passions tying me closely to my degrees, including urban geography, innovative methods of conservation, and using GIS to solve issues facing our planet. These interests were facilitated by the outstanding faculty in this department who taught me the lessons of space and place and the laws of geography to the most controversial debates in the discipline.
Tell us about a Geography class that you found particularly impactful in terms of influencing what you plan to do post-graduation.
I’d have to go with Geography 370: Introduction to Cartography. It was the first Cart/GIS course that I took during my Freshman year and is the reason why I declared my majors. The class introduced me to the world of GIS and Digital Mapping and taught me valuable skills in graphic design, data analysis, and data visualization. I have fond memories of sitting in the computer lab until 2 a.m., moving labels and deciding on color schemes for my final project.
Alternatively, I have really enjoyed working on my capstone project “A Spatial-Temporal Review of the Beer Industry and its Cultural Impact in Milwaukee, Wisconsin” for Geography 565. The project has been a real culmination of my studies, combining human geography with geospatial analysis to understand how the beer industry serves Milwaukee County, which is where I grew up. I have had a blast working with my project group and it has inspired my career aspiration to work with urban applications of mapping.
For the past two years, you’ve served as the department’s communications intern. Tell us a bit about what this job entailed as well as what you learned from it.
My role as the department’s communications intern took many forms. First and foremost, I was the manager of the department’s social media, which at the start included Facebook, LinkedIn, and X (no longer active). During my first year on the job, I launched the department’s Instagram page which has amassed almost 300 followers and gets our highest engagement rate across all social platforms. Managing the social media involved making posts about student and faculty awards, profiles, Yi-Fu lectures, news articles, and campus-wide events like Fill the Hill and Day of the Badger. In addition to social media, my other primary responsibility was to be the editor of the monthly newsletters and news digests. This involved writing and editing stories about faculty, staff, and students and taking photographs at events in Science Hall and around campus. Smaller responsibilities of mine included serving on the External Relations Committee, attending communications workshops, and relaying department news to the student Geography Club.
I was able to get a lot out of my time in this role. While I plan to pursue a career in GIS and not communications, my newfound ability to communicate complex geographic research to the wide social media audience will be a powerful tool in the professional world. Additionally, working on fundraising campaigns has also taught me how to engage alumni. Finally, the connections I have made with department staff and faculty through this role have made a large impact on my education and helped to make me feel a part of the geography community.
