Whither physical geography Redux: Revisiting the place of physical geography in the United States

Abstract

The differentiation of human and physical geography is a fundamental distinction in Geography. This commentary examines the past, present, and possible future places of physical geography within Geography, focusing on the situation in the United States. Physical geography played a major role in the establishment of Geography as an academic discipline, but became marginalized soon thereafter. For the past 80 years, Geography in the United States has largely been a social science that has uneasily accommodated a natural-science component within it. Although somewhat healthy during the latter part of the 20th century, physical geography appears to be on the decline. In part, this situation reflects the social-science identity of Geography, a lack of adequate training of physical geographers in basic science and mathematics, as well as growing emphasis on research in geomorphology, climatology, and biogeography, the major subfields of physical geography, by cognate disciplines. The future of physical geography is in doubt: it could keep struggling to compete with better-trained scientists in cognate disciplines, evolve into a geospatial methods branch of the earth and environmental sciences, or pursue integrated research with human geographers to address Anthropocene concerns. Any of these paths forward has important implications for trying to sustain the process approach to inquiry that has underpinned research in physical geography since the 1950s. Regardless of how physical geography evolves, it needs to seriously address issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion. Doing so will only enhance whatever it becomes.