Meenakshi Wadhwa

For decades, everyone understood what geology was – a discipline with a long tradition, reasonably clear boundaries, and well defined career opportunities. Now it’s a bit more complicated. The emphasis is on interdisciplinary studies, systems thinking, and a lot more focus on the boundaries of geology rather than its core.

That reimagination of geology has been embraced with enthusiasm by Arizona State University in the USA, where geology sits inside the “School of Earth and Space Exploration”. So who better to discuss the future of geology than Meenakshi Wadhwa, the director of the School; planetary geologist and tireless promoter of widening access to geoscience?

On our side this conversation involves Iain Stewart and Neil Evans, and Meena begins by talking about her experiences getting into geology as a woman from India.