Thomas J. Sigler

Welcome to my website.  I am currently a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Geography at Penn State.  I consider myself to be an urban geographer with a focus on how global forces, particularly globalization, have shaped urban environments around the world.  My primary interest is in how cities change over time in response to global systemic shifts. 

During the past few years, I have spent a considerable amount of time in Central America.  My doctoral research is directed toward understanding the forces that have shaped the contemporary urban landscape of Panama City, Panama.  The city’s  sudden growth has been unparalleled in the Western Hemisphere and my research seeks to explain how and why this ‘boom’ occurred.  Given Panama’s unique relationship to global trade vis-a-vis the Panama Canal and the Colon Free Trade Zone, I hypothesize that the city defies conventional categorization such as ‘world’ city, ‘global’ city, or ‘shock’ city.  That said, the goal of my research is to create a new typology for cities similar to Panama (examples include Dubai and Miami), whereby a post-industrial, relational economy is created around global communications networks and trade linkages.

Aside from research, I am very involved in service learning and developing programs that give students firsthand experience in foreign countries.  I have been involved with an organization called Global Brigades, which gives undergraduates the opportunity to travel to Central America on medical, business-development, or environmental trips.

Thomas Sigler

Department of Geography

Pennsylvania State University

302 Walker Building

University Park, PA 16802

 

sigler@psu.edu

 

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