Forrest Bowlick Appointed New Fellows Coordinator

The Northeast Climate Adaptation Science Center is pleased to announce that Forrest Bowlick recently joined our team as the center’s new Fellows Coordinator. In this role, Bowlick will oversee all aspects of our Fellows Program, which prepares graduate students and postdoctoral researchers for leadership positions in climate adaptation science by enhancing their skills in stakeholder engagement, collaboration, and climate science communication. Over the past decade, more than 100 alumni of our Fellows Program have accepted climate adaptation science positions in academia, government and NGOs across the U.S.

An expert in Geographic Information Science (GIS), Bowlick is a Senior Lecturer in both the Department of Earth, Geographic and Climate Sciences (EGCS) and the Department of Environmental Conservation at UMass Amherst. He has published widely on the topic of GIS education, and much of his research has focused on investigating barriers to learning GIS among scholars from a multitude of disciplines. His book, Teaching GIS to Digital Natives, is under contract with Routledge and will appear in print next year. Bowlick earned a PhD in Geography from Texas A&M University in 2016 and has been a UMass faculty member for the past eight years.  

During his UMass career, Bowlick has excelled as both a teacher and mentor. His introductory and advanced GIS courses have proven popular with students, who have praised him for his organized, energetic, and effective approach to teaching. In his position as director of the Master of Geography -  Geographic Information Science and Technology concentration, Bowlick has advised and mentored scores of students. Through this experience, he has amassed expertise in helping students advance their professional development by coaching them on best practices for conducting job searches, creating resumes, communicating about their research, and preparing for interviews.  

“We are incredibly excited to welcome Forrest as our new Fellows Coordinator,” said Bethany Bradley, NE CASC University Codirector. “His wide range of skills and accomplishments–as a researcher, teacher, mentor, and community-builder–make him an ideal fit to oversee our Fellows Program. I am confident that Forrest will draw from his wealth of experience to build on the many strengths of our program while also developing new strategies to ensure that our graduate and postdoctoral fellows are well prepared to play leading roles in advancing climate adaptation within and beyond our region.”