Department of Geography and Geology - Leslie North
Associate Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies
Dr. North earned her doctorate in Geography and Environmental Science and Policy
from the University of South Florida in Tampa. Since she was first exposed to karst
science as an undergraduate student, Leslie has focused her collegiate and research
activities on understanding and protecting these fragile terrains. During her Master’s
thesis research, which focused on evaluating anthropogenic karst disturbances, Leslie
reached the startling conclusion that both the general public and policymakers have
a very limited understanding of karst terrains, resulting in widespread misuse of
these landscapes. As a result, for her dissertation Dr North conducted the first holistic
study of karst-related educational programs implemented in the United States and abroad,
and the tools, techniques, and feasibility of educating the general public at karst
attractions, particularly show-cave facilities. Through a large body of data collected
from over 100 show caves worldwide, she was able to illustrate the existence of multiple
missed opportunities and misconceptions about educational pursuits in informal learning
environments that are ultimately hindering the pursuit of appropriate geologic education
and encouraging erroneous measures of program success. Dr. North is an associate of
the Center for Human Geo-Environmental Studies (CHNGES) . For more information about her teaching and research interests contact Dr. North
at leslie.north@wku.edu.
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