Michael Geiger

Michael Geiger is the Graduate Assistant for Peace Corps Coverdell Fellowship Recruitment. Michael is originally from Upstate New York but has been a proud Arizona resident since 2019. Working as an Academic Advisor for Arts programs at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff and Pima Community College here in Tucson, it has been exciting to switch teams and be a student again. He earned a B.S. in Community Health, a major chosen specifically to join the Peace Corps, and focused his capstone project on Malaria in Sub-Saharan Africa. He served as a Health Extension volunteer in Tanzania, East Africa from 2017-2019 determined to tackle issues of HIV, Malaria, and Malnutrition. Michael’s host community was in the semi-arid Dodoma Region, which experienced an average rainfall of 0mm from June-September. This harsh climate quickly shifted his project's focus to the unfamiliar territory of water security, arid permaculture, and multi-purpose tree nurseries. He trained with local partners and built rainwater catchment tanks, created biointensive gardens, and installed drip irrigation systems. He felt great excitement watching plants grow from seeds and especially enjoyed the community garden design phases of his projects. In his downtime during service, Michael picked up illustration and wildlife photography. His love of art and design, deep appreciation of nature, and habit of procrastinating with yard work combined to make him a perfect fit for the Master of Landscape Architecture program. He is eager to take these passions and practices to new heights in another dry climate slice of the world. His work will make a positive impact on the health of people, plants, animals, ecosystems, and the urban climate of Tucson and beyond. He is excited to assist prospective Coverdell Fellows in finding their place at the University of Arizona.