Last fall, Nathaniel Geiger joined the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS) as an assistant professor specializing in Behavior, Education, and Communication (BEC). He holds a PhD in social psychology from Pennsylvania State University, where he focused on the psychology of sustainability. 

Geiger comes to SEAS from Indiana University (IU), where he was an assistant professor of communication science at The Media School. While at IU, he worked on multiple research projects, covering topics such as preparedness for environmental change in Indiana, and how individuals become engaged with environmental issues. He is continuing to work with students at IU on these projects.

One of these projects is a multi-year one on pluralistic ignorance, “a condition where most people hold a certain opinion but they falsely believe that other people don’t hold that same opinion.” In this research, he’s found that “in the U.S., most people care somewhat about climate change, but they think that they are in the minority, that other people don’t care.”

According to Geiger, topics related to behavior, education, and communication are becoming increasingly important in the field of sustainability and climate change. He says, “Right now, climate change is an issue that a lot of people care about.”

“What we really need to think about is how can we communicate about climate change in a way that elevates this and shows that this is an important issue to people and that politicians, regardless of what party they are, should take this seriously, because people are going to encourage them, pressure them to do that,” says Geiger.

Geiger says he’s known about the BEC program at SEAS for a long time, as it is “one of the oldest programs that is really focused on the social and behavioral sciences looking at addressing environmental issues in the country and the world.” He adds that when he was applying to graduate school 15 years ago, the SEAS BEC program kept coming up and had such a great reputation, which is why he was excited to have the opportunity to join the faculty and contribute to the next chapter of BEC history.

“One thing I really like about being at a university is that all of us, myself included, have the opportunity to continue to learn and continue to change,” says Geiger. “I’m hoping to have the opportunity to contribute to that development in the BEC students.”

Geiger is the advisor for a master’s project on ecotourism and sustainability in the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica. This project, called RegenerOsa, will be working with local nonprofit organizations looking at sustainable development, sustainable agriculture and surfing tourism. The master’s project group will be traveling to Costa Rica this summer to conduct research through on-the-ground fieldwork.

This semester, Geiger is teaching two courses. The first course, “Communicating Climate Change,” will cover how we effectively communicate climate change through a variety of outcomes and goals, particularly with public engagement. The second course, “The Social Nature of Pro-Environmental Action,” explores how people interact, communicate and influence each other to take action on environmental topics.