In January 2005 Dickinson College, in Carlisle, PA, initiated an educational program aimed at helping students cross the disciplinary boundaries between the physical and social sciences to better understand the causes and consequences of natural disasters. A group of 3 faculty and 16 students spent two weeks in Montserrat, studying sociology and geology associated with the volcanic history of the island. Within the next three years, Dickinson faculty are hoping to return to Montserrat to continue this interdisciplinary program with new groups of students. In the near future, Dickinson faculty are working at strengthening their connections with Montserrat by continuing to expand field and laboratory studies of volcanic deposits from the Centre Hills volcano and by interviewing displaced Montserratians who have moved to New York. The sociological work will expand over the next academic year to include interviews with Montserratians now living in the U.K. If you are interested in more information about the Dickinson in Montserrat program, please contact either Ben Edwards (edwardsb@dickinson.edu) or Dan Schubert (schubert@dickinson.edu).
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Geology at Dickinson College
Sociology at Dickinson College
Ben Edwards PhD., Assistant Professor of Geology
Dan Schubert PhD., Associate professor of Sociology Department Chair
Geology 311/Sociology 230