Dr. Timothy L. Hawthorne
Auburn University
Dr. Timothy L. Hawthorne is Full Professor and Chair in the Department of Geosciences at Auburn University, a Fellow of the American Association of Geographers, a National Geographic Explorer, and Founder of Geo Explorer Labs. He is broadly trained in GIS and human geography with expertise in community geography, geographic education, Participatory GIS, mixed methods, and unoccupied aerial vehicles. In 2015, he founded an internationally recognized research and education group called Citizen Science GIS which is now housed at Auburn University. The group’s goal is to connect scientists, educators, teachers, students, and society with geospatial technologies to make science more accessible and responsive to community concerns. At his previous university, he and his team launched the USA’s first GeoBus, a mobile STEM education lab powered by solar energy on a repurposed 40-foot city that provides geospatial technology learning experiences to K-12 youth, families, and teachers in Florida. At Auburn, he and his team developed Geo Explorer Labs, a set of mobile learning labs to bring science and technology to children, educators, and communities, helping them explore the grand challenges of Earth, the environment, and society in a rapidly changing world. In 2025, the team launched Geo Explorer Auburn on a 36-foot Class A RV to serve Alabama. He and his team, along with University of Belize colleagues, are also launching Geo Explorer Belize, their first international mobile lab in Central America in late 2026. Since 2012, he has passionately mentored and funded the next generation of geography and GIS in community geography fieldwork experiences in Central America and the USA as Principal Investigator of 4 grants from the NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates and Teachers Site program. These grants have removed financial barriers to research training and fieldwork experiences centered on community geography and GIS for around 100 participants with over 70 percent being from underrepresented groups in STEM. Additionally, he has served the discipline of geography as former Associate Editor for Journal of Geography and International Journal of Applied Geospatial Research. Dr. Hawthorne has been an active leader with the American Association of Geographers as current Treasurer of the Geography Education Specialty Group; a long-time speaker in the GTU and AAG Visiting Geographical Scientist Program; and former Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary of the Applied Geography Specialty Group.
Research Areas: GIScience, Participatory GIS, community geography, geographic education, UAVs/drones, social and environmental disparities, Belize
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4565-3745
Degrees: Dr. Hawthorne received a B.A. in Geography from Ohio Wesleyan University (2003), an M.A. in Geography from West Virginia University (2005), and a Ph.D. in Geography from The Ohio State University (2010).