Rick Graetz is not your ordinary adjunct. He's a world-class mountaineer, renowned landscape photographer, ambassador for Big Sky, MT, and a respected, successful publisher. And now he wants to help UM forge a "Mountain Institute," to offer degrees and study of the topography he knows and loves best.
"UM is becoming more a presence in my life, "he said. "I'm involved here with some of the best and brightest people." Graetz and his colleagues hope to get the Mountain Institute and a corresponding PhD program up and running soon. "It makes such common sense to have a mountain program here," Graetz added.
The Mountain Institute already has support from some key players, including Jerry Fetz, Dean of the College of Arts and Science, and President George Dennison. "There's no road block in the way of good ideas," said Graetz, adding Dennison has been especially supportive in a time "when Montana has been de-investing in education."
The department has already sent investigative teams out to proffer the institute idea, and is strengthening ties with like-minded programs, such as the Glacier Institute. From Fort Peck to Tajikistan , university officials have been working to establish UM's expertise in mountain and ecosystem tourism. Fetz, Dennison, and Director of International Programs Mehrdad Kia went to Tajikistan last year to establish ties with universities there. Gratez and fellow professor Artie Kia followed this year. "Tajikistan," Graetz said, "is this little gem. It was the nerve center of the Silk Road. It's undiscovered territory, with the greatest concentration of ice fields in a temperate zone."
Graetz said "most of the world's mountains are tough, harsh places to live in. There are lots of cultures being disrupted (by global tourism)." One goal of the Mountains Institute will be to "help these people help themselves, to see what they can do with sustainable tourism that doesn't destroy the culture of the country, but works with it." The philosophy of cooperation is integral to Graetz. "If you stand up alone, a strong wind can blow you down," he reflects.
Graetz hopes to apply the same principle to eastern Montana, as well. The Geography department, along with the Foundation for Community Vitality, will hold two symposiums in the fall of 2007 discussing possibilities for sustainable tourism and sustainable agriculture in the eastern two-thirds of our state.
Another visible face of the Institute will be a mountain geography text currently under development by Graetz and Ullie Kamp, a UM geography professor and earthquake consultant to Pakistan.
"I feel a geography degree is perhaps one of the most useful degrees a student can earn, especially if they emphasize the human/cultural aspect" Graetz said.
No comments:
Post a Comment