Charles Button

Dr. Charles E. Button is a Professor of Geography and Sustainability at Central Connecticut State University.  His academic and research interests include global sustainability, climate destabilization/change, water resources, and human-environment interactions. Dr. Button spearheaded the creation of the MS degree in Geography with a specialization in Global Sustainability at Central. He is the founder and Chair of the Global Environmental Sustainability Action Coalition and a member and past Faculty Chair of the Central President’s Advisory Council for Environmental Sustainability.  During his career, Dr. Button has received many distinctions, including a CT Governor’s Climate Change Leadership Award, a Green Circle Award from the CT Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and a Literati Award for a peer-reviewed publication about sustainability.

Dr. Button has over thirty years of experience working for, and with, numerous environmental and social NGO’s, businesses, academic institutions, and federal, state and local governmental agencies. Prior to coming to Central, he served as a Water Quality Research Fellow for the United States Environmental Protection Agency and Environmental Programs Director/Recycling Coordinator for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Dr. Button’s academic background includes a bachelor’s degree in Geography from Mansfield University of Pennsylvania (1987), a master’s degree in Geo-Environmental Studies from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania (1989), and a doctorate degree in Geography with a minor in Ecology from the University of Cincinnati (2003).

His inspiration to do the work he does comes from his sons Sky and River and his wife Beth.