Description
Assistant Professor of Geography & Sustainability, Fall 2026
The Department of Geography & Sustainability at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville seeks a broadly trained geographer with research expertise and teaching interests in climate extremes and impacts on the environment and human communities for a tenure-track Assistant Professor position starting 1 August 2026. We seek a scholar with interests in community-based or stakeholder-driven research aimed at enhancing climate resiliency. The successful candidate will join a dynamic department characterized by mutual support and a commitment to community-engaged scholarship. The position is part of the College of Arts and Sciences Societal Resilience to Climate Change hiring constellation, which is an interdisciplinary cluster of new faculty lines in the natural and social sciences, as well as the arts and humanities (see below).
The successful candidate will be expected to establish and maintain a strong program of research and publication in climate science and resilience, and to develop a robust, externally funded research portfolio that advances the candidate’s research as well as the mission of the Department of Geography & Sustainability. The successful candidate will provide support to our degree programs by teaching engaged undergraduate and graduate courses (3–4 courses/year), providing innovative instruction, partnering with colleagues to promote the department’s classes and degree programs, and taking an active role in bringing currency and creativity to curriculum development. They will also provide service to the department, university, and discipline. The successful candidate will demonstrate an ability to teach and mentor graduate and undergraduate students. UT is a land-grant university and values engaged forms of research/scholarship/creative activity, teaching and service, and considers evidence of these commitments in the records of applicants. Applicants must have a doctoral degree in Geography or related field at the time of appointment.
The Department of Geography & Sustainability occupies the Burchfiel Geography Building at the heart of the Knoxville campus. The department consists of 26 full-time faculty committed to maintaining teaching and research excellence in human geography, physical geography, sustainability, and GIScience. The department also supports a student-centered, award-winning program of academic excellence, serving approximately 50 graduate students (MS and PhD) and 200 undergraduate majors and minors across Geography (BA), Sustainability (BA), and Geographic Information Science and Technology (BS). Additional students pursue one of several minors, including Climate Change and Broadcast Meteorology. To learn more about the department, visit: http://geography.utk.edu.
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville is the flagship educational institution in the State of Tennessee. The city of Knoxville is a hidden gem with a beautiful and walkable downtown, a diverse music scene, active neighborhoods, unique restaurants, and a robust offering of outdoor and cultural activities. Knoxville is located within easy driving distance to Asheville, Nashville, Atlanta, and the Great Smoky Mountains. Knoxville has a metropolitan population of 850,000 people, and the region houses many leading science agencies, including Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Tennessee Valley Authority.
The University is beginning a next-level initiative aimed both at substantially elevating the University's national reputation for impactful research, scholarship, and creative activity and at assembling a roster of faculty committed to delivering one of the nation's best educational experiences for undergraduate and graduate students. The successful candidate may engage with a variety of university initiatives, including the Institute for Climate and Community Resilience, the Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs, the Center for Environment, Transportation, and Energy, and the Institute for a Secure and Sustainable Environment.
Societal Resilience to Climate Change (SoReCC) Constellation: Climate change has already become, and will remain, a defining global challenge of the 21st century. With societies now experiencing acute effects of rapid climate change, including environmental degradation, changes in global migration patterns, and political conflicts among nation-states, public and expert attention is increasingly shifting towards developing societal capabilities for disaster preparedness, prevention, mitigation, and resilience. Positions added in the SoReCC strategic focus area will leverage the College’s existing instructional and research strength in disciplines and transdisciplinary areas that speak to questions of climate change and societal resilience; because of students’ interest in working to combat the most acute effects of global climate change, these disciplines are also ones that experience strong undergraduate and graduate instructional demand. Strengthening research and instructional capabilities in this focus area helps make life and lives better and connects with existing UTK-wide initiatives such as One Health and research on the circular bioeconomy and global energy ecosystems.
Qualifications
Required Qualifications: The candidate must have a background in climate science and have earned a PhD in Geography or in a closely related discipline by the time of appointment.
Preferred Qualifications: Interests in community-based or stakeholder-driven research.
Application Instructions
Candidates should apply through Interfolio at https://apply.interfolio.com/171870, providing a cover letter, curriculum vitae, and two separate statements on Research and Teaching. Candidates must also arrange to have three letters of reference sent by the deadline. The Knoxville campus of the University of Tennessee is seeking candidates who have the ability to promote an atmosphere where all members of the university community feel welcome and can thrive. In addition to addressing their qualifications for the position in their application, candidates may describe how they would help promote an atmosphere where all members of the university community feel welcome and can thrive in the department and the University of Tennessee through their teaching and research/scholarship/creative activities. All inquiries should be directed to Dr. Kelsey Ellis, Search Committee Chair, Department of Geography & Sustainability, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-0925 ([email protected]). To ensure full consideration, all materials, including references, should be submitted by 15 September 2025. Review of applications will continue until the position is filled.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment and admission without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, and parental status, or any other characteristic protected by federal or state law. In accordance with the requirements of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the University of Tennessee affirmatively states that it does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or disability in its education programs and activities, and this policy extends to employment by the university.
Requests for accommodation of a disability should be directed to the ADA Coordinator at Equal Opportunity and Accessibility, 1840 Melrose Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37996-3560, by email to [email protected], or by phone at 865-974-2498. Inquiries and charges of violation of Title VI (race, color, and national origin), Title IX (sex), Section 504 (disability), the ADA (disability), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (age), sexual orientation, or veteran status should be directed to the Office of Investigation and Resolution, 216 Business Incubator Building, E J. Chapman Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996-3560, by email to [email protected], or by phone at 865-974-0717.
