Careers News: Spotlight on Geographers
Items featured here include external resources about professional geographers and careers in geography and related fields. To suggest an item, email careers@aag.org.
- Spotlight profile: Chuck Bennett, Vice President of Earth and Community Care, Aveda
Reflecting on a successful career in corporate citizenship and sustainability, Chuck Bennett is grateful that he chose to study geography. He credits the interdisciplinary nature of the field with enabling him to understand the key issues, information, technology, people, and organizations involved in his work.
- A self-funded PhD shares secrets of his success
Hang Kei Ho received his PhD in human geography from University College London in April 2013. Despite the challenges, he observes that balancing the demands of work and school facilitated his academic, personal, and professional growth.
- Spotlight profile: Anthony Robinson, Lead Faculty for Online Geospatial Education, Penn State University
Geographer Anthony Robinson will soon lead the largest cartography course in history. His free Coursera MOOC (massive open online course) "Maps and the Geospatial Revolution" kicks off on July 17.
- Spotlight profile: Trevor Paglen, Photographer and experimental geographer
Photographer Trevor Paglen holds a PhD in geography from UC-Berkeley. He created an ultra-archival disc of photographs called "The Last Pictures." Designed to last billions of years, the disc was launched into geostationary orbit aboard the satellite Echostar XVI in the fall of 2012.
- Internation survey reveals millenials' concern about economy, optimism for future
A survey of 12,000 "millenials" in 27 countries reveals universal perceptions as well as geographic variations in opinions and beliefs held by young adults aged 18-30. Overall, the findings suggest that "there's a sense of optimism about this young generation," says Alfredo Timermans, CEO of Telefonica International, U.S.A.
- Spotlight profile: Emma Arnold, Founder, Institute for Art and Environment
In 2009, environmental studies graduate Emma Arnold founded the Institute for Art and Environment, a Montreal-based think-tank with a mission to bridge the "art/science divide" within the environmental sector.
- Virginia high schoolers learn GIS to prepare for careers and college
Students enrolled in Centreville High School's Geospatial Analysis course are using GIS to propose solutions to real-world problems. While learning technical and analytical skills applicable in a wide variety of careers, they're also earning college credit.
- Job growth and shortfall of educated workers expected by 2020
The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce anticipates that 24 million new jobs will be added to the U.S. economy by 2020 while an additional 31 million replacement jobs will result from impending retirements. Nearly two-thirds of these positions will require some post-secondary education or training.
- Spotlight profile: Yi-Fu Tuan, Professor Emeritus of Geography, UW-Madison
Regarded by many as the "father of humanist geography," Yi-Fu Tuan remains an active contributor to the discipline and the university 15 years after his retirement. He was recently awarded the Vautrin-Lud International Geography Prize, the highest honor a geographer can receive, and the inaugural AAG Stanley Brunn Award for Creativity in Geography.
- NSF announces winners of STEM graduate education challenge
The National Science Foundation has announced the winning projects submitted to its Innovation in Graduate Education challenge. Top prizes went to proposals that focused on key areas for potential improvement in graduate preparation, including career development, science communication skills, collaboration, curriculum reform, and mentoring.
