Richard Vercoe

Education

PhD Geography and Integrative Conservation, University of Georgia (2021)

MA Geography and Environment & Natural Resources, University of Wyoming (2011)

BA Nature and Culture and Cultural Anthropology, University of California, Davis (2000)

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Background and Expertise

Dr. Richard Vercoe is an Associate Lecturer at the Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Wyoming. He holds a dual PhD in Integrative Conservation and Geography from the University of Georgia. His teaching and research center on recreation ecology, sustainable development, human-environment dynamics, and political ecology, with an emphasis on participatory action research. Richard worked with local, national, and international NGOs in the Patagonia region of southern Chile for 8 years, developing and managing wilderness conservation and community-based sustainable development projects. This work led to his master's and doctoral work in the conservation of heritage agricultural systems and traditional ecological practices in Chiloe, Chile.
Richard is currently working on issues of outdoor recreation and tourism's impacts on natural resources and ecosystems, as well as how those impacts influence visitor experiences with nature. 
Beyond academia, he brings extensive leadership experience in outdoor education, operating outdoor adventure programs in Colorado as well as community-based, sustainable recreation and tourism development in Patagonia and the Western U.S. Most recently, he founded the Wyo Trail FAIRIES to engage local communities with land managers in practicing citizen-based environmental stewardship. Fluent in Spanish and certified in wilderness medicine and outdoor leadership, he bridges scholarly expertise with real-world environmental engagement.

 

Selected Publications

“Trueque Chilote: Traditional barter networks connect nature and society in Northern Patagonia.” R.Vercoe 2018. In Chiloé: The Ethnobiology of an Island Culture, eds. A. Daughters and A. Pitchon. New York: Springer.

“Acknowledging Trade-offs and Understanding Complexity: Exurbanization Issues in Macon County, North Carolina.” R Vercoe, M Welch-Devine, D Hardy, J. Demoss, S Bonney, K Allen, P Brosius, D Charles, B. Crawford, S Heisel, N Heynen , R G. de Jesús-Crespo, N Nibbelink, L Parker, C Pringle, A Shaw, L Van Sant.  Ecology and Society 19(1): 23.

“A Tale of Two Sustainabilities: Comparing Sustainability in the Global North and South to Uncover Meaning for Educators.” R Vercoe, and R Brinkmann. Journal of Sustainability Education. 2012.