Colin Higgins is a sophomore at UW– Madison where he is majoring in people-environment geography, history, and environmental studies. He is particularly interested in the way that cultural attitudes towards the environment, along with political and economic systems shape the way that land – especially agricultural land – is used and conserved. This summer he was awarded the Welton Apprenticeship to work with Tyler Lark and Holly Gibbs to map Potentially Available Croplands in the United States. Specifically, Colin will be helping to map American turf lawns, and assess their suitability for small-scale urban agriculture.

Colin is involved with local sustainable and urban agriculture projects, working at the student farm, FH King Students for Sustainable Agriculture, and with a Middleton garden-based education group, Growing Food and Sustainability. Additionally he is involved with the UW-Madison Student Government, founding the Sustainability Committee to influence campus policies surrounding the environment. Outside of this, Colin is enjoys biking, cooking, traveling and playing guitar.

Where are they Now?

Senior Research Fellow at Drexel Nowak Metro Finance Lab.