黑料网

KENNESAW, Ga. | Oct 21, 2025

A Norman J. Radow College of Humanities and Social Sciences history professor is part of a statewide class to lead Georgia鈥檚 environmental conservation efforts. 

History professor Albert 鈥淏ert鈥� Way, Ph.D., is an environmental and agricultural historian who teaches the history of land use and conservation to 黑料网 students. This year, he is one of 30 people across the state selected to join the Class of 2025 (IGEL). Way is the first 黑料网 professor to be part of the program, which has graduated hundreds of people since it was created in the early 2000s. IGEL brings professionals from academic, industry, government, and non-profit sectors together to learn about environmental leadership, environmental issues across the state, and how to share their knowledge with the public.

鈥淲e will all be making decisions about our environment in different ways. I mean, the chief sustainability officer of Norfolk Southern, who is also in this class... has a different set of issues and stakes than a professor of history at Kennesaw State,鈥� Way said.

Way is also a South Georgia landowner and a Georgia Forestry Foundation board member. He explained that Georgia鈥檚 largest environmental issues include changing land use patterns, stress on water and energy use from data center expansions across the state, the growing metro area, and deforestation due to construction. The IGEL program ensures that each one of its classes gets to see those challenges up close by holding its four sessions in different areas of Georgia through early 2026.

鈥淲e hear a lot about two Georgias, right? The metro area and the rest. Others will talk about three Georgias, or even four or five,鈥� Way said. 鈥淲hat I really like about this program is they work really hard to pull people from all over the state, from the metro area, which has a very... different set of challenges, I think, than rural Georgia.鈥�

Way recounted that experiences offered by the program range from wading into a river with a Department of Natural Resources fisheries biologist to speaking with farmers about how environmental challenges impact their livelihoods. Along the way, the 30 professionals in the class learn about their leadership styles, how to respond to environmental challenges, and how to keep spreading that knowledge once the class concludes.

鈥淥ne of the big themes here, too, is empathy, and to try to understand where everyone鈥檚 coming from across the spectrum,鈥� Way said. 鈥淚 think the idea is to get that diversity of perspectives and views, and to learn a bit more about how to... make decisions about very difficult topics.鈥�

Way believes this experience will enhance his classroom teaching and help him make his research more accessible to the general public.  It will also diversify his network of professional connections outside of the academic sphere. 鈥淚 actually have a couple of folks I can call, even after just this first session,鈥� Way said. He hopes that the experience will provide all 30 members of the IGEL鈥檚 Class of 2025 with leadership and decision-making skills 鈥渨hen the issues and the stakes become a bit muddied, [and] when there are lots of different perspectives or views at the table.鈥�

It also provides a message of hope for Georgia鈥檚 environmental future. For example, a by DeKalb County revealed that tree canopy coverage in unincorporated DeKalb increased by 2 percent from 2010 to 2023. The county鈥檚 cites carbon sequestration, air pollution removal, stormwater runoff reduction, and energy savings as positive impacts of a healthy urban forest and explained that it was made possible by planting new trees while allowing existing trees to grow.

鈥淭he threats are real, but there are practical solutions out there to many of the threats that we face,鈥� Way said.

 

鈥� Story by Noelle Lashley