A Professor Ronald Hull Buchanan (1931-2025) - An appreciation

An appreciation

Abstract

Ronnie Buchanan was Professor of Geography at Queen’s University of Belfast (QUB) and formerly Director of its Institute of Irish Studies between 1982 and 1993.  He spent most of his academic career at QUB where he gained a PhD in 1958. Following a year teaching in the USA, he joined the Department of Geography QUB as a lecturer in 1959, becoming full professor in 1982.  Three distinct sets of contributions can be identified in terms of his legacy. First, in pedagogical terms, he encouraged students to analyse their subject matter and adopt a more holistic approach to the study of geography. He was committed to interdisciplinary research. Second, he contributed in many ways to the work and education of future planners as reflected in his publications which went beyond his own specialism of Irish historical geography. He had the ability to go outside the ivory tower of academia to the real world of policy and practice. Third, he actively engaged with students to gain a better understanding of their backgrounds and motivations. Future generations of geographers and planners will be rewarded by recognising the contribution he made to our understanding of the changes impacting on our urban and rural spaces.