The Department of Geography has four primary missions.
1. The department has a mission to the discipline of Geography and to the scientific community to encourage and advance geographic scholarship by conserving the acquired knowledge of the past, by developing new knowledge through ongoing research, and by transmitting research findings to our students and to the scientific community.
2. The department has a mission to graduate and undergraduate students to provide training in analytical, technical, and communication skills that are essential for participating actively and successfully in a rapidly changing environment, and to convey the importance of understanding world problems, cultures, and economic-political systems within the context of global interdependence and cooperation.
3. The department has a mission to the University at Buffalo (UB) and to the State University of New York (SUNY) to contribute in significant ways to increasing the scholarly writing, sponsored research, and professional activities of the discipline of Geography, to provide comprehensive and relevant program development at the doctoral, Master’s, and undergraduate levels, and to provide appropriate General Education courses to core disciplines and professional schools at UB.
4. The department has a mission to society to further the capabilities of academia to address the urgent needs of contemporary and future communities, and to contribute specifically to the increasing problem-solving needs of the private and public sectors.