The George Perkins Marsh Institute
The George Perkins Marsh Institute (GPMI) at Clark University is dedicated to
research on one of the most fundamental questions confronting humankind:
What is and ought to be our relationship with nature?
Grounded in nearly a century of related study and research at Clark, the George Perkins Marsh
Institute provides national and international leadership in studying the relationship between
humans and the environment, as well as human dimensions of environmental change. Named after
the noted environmentalist George Perkins Marsh and built on a tradition of basic and applied
research on environmental hazards and international development, the Institute fosters team-based
research that engages graduate students and research faculty in problem formulation and resolution.
The Institute supports interdisciplinary and collaborative research, education and outreach
within a variety of research focus areas, and is home to approximately 65 research faculty,
staff, and graduate students with appointments ranging from the humanities to the social and
natural sciences. Among other facilities, the Institute houses the
Jeanne X. Kasperson Library and the office of the new, multi-institutional Institute for
Energy Innovation and Sustainability (IEIS).
The Institute does not grant degrees, but advanced degrees can be sought through the affiliated
programs and departments of Clark University. Support comes from the University, private donations,
grants from foundations, and grants and contracts from state and federal agencies. The Institute
currently holds some $4.5 million in active grants and contracts.
Notable recent activities include the Socio-Technical Transitions Initiative studying evolutions
towards energy sustainability; a major study of suburbanization, water-use and nitrogen cycling
funded by the NSF Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems (CNH) Program; and a new partnership
with Arizona State University studying the role of tourism in social, economic and environmental
prosperity. The Institute is also home to initiatives that provide students with unique hands-on
research experiences, including the Polaris Project in the Siberian Arctic and the Human-Environment
Regional Observatory-Central Massachusetts (HERO-CM) research program. The Marsh Institute played
a leading role in developing the Core Project on Global Land-Use/Cover Change (LUCC) for the
International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme and the International Human Dimensions Programme,
and assists the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) in developing the
analytical capacities to address environmental changes in general. Often cited publications
include The Earth as Transformed by Human Action (1990) and Regions at Risk:
Comparisons of Threatened Environments (1995).
This website provides links and information regarding the many programs and initiatives
supported by the Institute, as well as announcements of seminars and other events. We welcome
any input or comments; please contact the Institute Director, Robert J. Johnston.
George Perkins Marsh Institute - Clark University
Visiting address: 16 Claremont Street, Worcester, MA 01610-1477
Mailing address: 950 Main Street, Worcester, MA 01610-1477
Phone: +1.508.751.4622
Fax: +1.508.751.4600
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