Newsletter – March-April 2022
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PRESIDENT’S COLUMN
War, Peace, and the Possibilities of a Shared Future
By Emily Yeh
The world’s attention is understandably riveted upon Ukraine. But as geographers, we think about the interconnectedness of places, and we have a responsibility to remind our communities, our publics, of this fundamental relationality.
ANNUAL MEETING
Thank you for joining us at the 2022 Annual Meeting!
With over 3,200 presentations in 1,000+ sessions, you helped to make the 2022 AAG Annual Meeting one to remember! Thank you for joining us. If you weren’t able to make every session, don’t worry: more than 800 sessions are archived on our meeting site and may be accessed by registered participants through August 29, 2022.
Take a look back at the 2022 Annual Meeting
Save the Date for AAG 2023 in Denver
Join us for the Mile-High meeting. Mark your calendar for the hybrid AAG Annual Meeting in Denver, CO on March 23-27, 2023. We invite you to organize and participate in sessions, workshops, field trips, special events, and activities. Look for more information throughout the summer to help you plan. We look forward to seeing you online and in the Rocky Mountains.
PUBLICATIONS
Alert: Articles with topics ranging from ranch management to societal distributions of ozone pollution to urban food access
The most recent issue of the Annals of the American Association of Geographers has been published online (Volume 112, Issue 2) with 16 new articles on contemporary geographic research. Topics in this issue include mobile gaming distribution platforms; atmospheric conditions for tornados; locatives in the English language; drinking water and hurricanes; the Mercator projection; geography and homophily in social networks; liver cancer risk factors; and the scalability of neighborhood effects. Locational areas of interest include Virginia’s Southern Appalachians; Greater Yellowstone ecosystem; the Chilean Atacama Desert; and Toronto. Authors are from a variety of research institutions including University of Cambridge; University of Utah; and Kyung Hee University.
All AAG members have full online access to all issues of the Annals through the Journals section of the AAG Member Dashboard. Each issue, the Editors choose one article to make freely available. In this issue you can read Agglomerative Effects of Crime Attractors and Generators on Street Robbery? An Assessment by Luojia 1-01 Satellite Nightlight by Lin Liu,Hanlin Zhou, and Minxuan Lan for free.
Questions about the Annals? Contact annals@aag.org.
In addition to the most recently published journal, read the latest issue of the other AAG journals online:
• Annals of the American Association of Geographers
• The Professional Geographer
• GeoHumanities
• The AAG Review of Books
• African Geographical Review
New issue of African Geographical Review
The latest issue of the journal of the Africa Specialty Group of the AAG, the African Geographical Review, has recently been published. Volume 41, Issue 1 is available online for subscribers and members of the Africa Specialty Group. This issue contains seven research articles, a book review, and one freely available commentary, COVID-19 pandemic: lessons from the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Southern Africa by Paul Mkandawire, Logan Cochrane, and Shazia Sadaf.
Call for Abstracts: Special Issue of the ‘Annals’ on “Networks”
How and why do we perceive and represent geographic phenomena as networks? Do networked spaces challenge established geographic thoughts (e.g., the first law of geography)? Is there new knowledge emerging from networks that transforms how we perceive and represent spaces? We welcome theoretical, methodological, and empirical contributions to networks from a range of views, such as environmental/biophysical, social/economic, political/cultural, ethical/legal, behavioral, and ontological/cognitive perspectives to contribute to the 2024 special issue of the Annals of the American Association of Geographers.
Abstracts of no more than 250 words should be submitted by e-mail to Jennifer Cassidento by March 31, 2022. Special Issue Editor Ling Bian will consider all abstracts and then invite a selection to submit full papers for peer review by June 1, 2022.
More information about the Special Issue
ASSOCIATION NEWS
Strengthening the Bridge Across the Digital Divide
For a small tribal college in northern Michigan, lacking basic resources for students was a regular issue, even under normal circumstances. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, it was only exacerbated.
“When the pandemic began and we had to transition to online curriculum, the only way for our students to succeed was to provide them with laptop computers that they could take home,” says Andrew Kozich, Environmental Science Department Chair at Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College (KBOCC).
This problem, however, was not limited to the students at KBOCC. Read more.
AAG Announces 2022 AAG Grant and Award Recipients
Congratulations to the recipients of 2022 AAG Awards including the Glenda Laws Award, the AAG Harm de Blij Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, the AAG E. Willard and Ruby S. Miller Award, the AAG Award for MA/MS Program Excellence, the J. Warren Nystrom Award, the William L. Garrison Award for Best Dissertation in Computational Geography, the AAG-Kauffman Awards for Best Paper and Best Student Paper in Geography & Entrepreneurship, and the Marble-Boyle Undergraduate Achievement Award in Geographic Science. The AAG also recognizes the individuals named to receive an AAG Grant including recipients of the Anne U. White Grant, the Dissertation Research Grants, the Research Grants, and the AAG Darrel Hess Community College Geography Scholarships.
AAG Announces 2021 Book Awards
The AAG is pleased to announce the recipients of the three 2021 AAG Book Awards: the John Brinckerhoff Jackson Prize, the AAG Globe Book Award for Public Understanding of Geography, and the AAG Meridian Book Award for Outstanding Scholarly Work in Geography. The AAG Book Awards mark distinguished and outstanding works published by geography authors during the previous year, 2021.
New Expanded Professional Development Webinar Series Launched
This spring, the AAG will be featuring geography professionals across industry and academia through our newly expanded Professional Development webinar series. Offering insights into early career development and department leadership, these webinars facilitate a virtual learning experience where experts share their unique knowledge and perspectives on a range of topics of interest to students, recent graduates, job seekers, department leaders, and early and mid-career professionals.
Mark your calendars for upcoming early career sessions that offer career mentorship and networking or tips on how to get noticed by employers and land a job in a variety of sectors. Join Department Leadership sessions to learn more about building healthy departments and the AAG’s Climate Forward Initiative. Registration is easy, and most sessions are open to members and non-members alike – simply create a free AAG Explorer account and sign up for the sessions that interest you most. For a full list of Professional Development webinar offerings and registration, visit the AAG event site HERE.
New Summer Series for Grad Students and Recent Graduates
AAG’s 2022 Virtual Summer Series will feature workshops, seminars, working groups, and forums between May and August, striving to guide current and recent geography students through their academic and professional journeys, and connect them with new peers.
Registrations will open in April. Seats will be limited, so subscribe to our mailing list from this link to get firsthand notifications.
A New AAG.org is Here!
What’s new at aag.org? A whole new way of engaging with your colleagues. From your new customizable dashboard, you can manage your membership, meeting registrations, and knowledge resources. It’s easier than ever to engage with the growing number of AAG opportunities: year-round webinars, journals, more than 80 Specialty and Affinity Groups, Regional Divisions, the Annual Meeting, advocacy resources, and special initiatives such as GeoEthics and the Summer Series for graduate students and early-career geographers. Come visit us— www.aag.org.
SWAAG Takes 2022 World Geography Bowl Title
The 2022 World Geography Bowl was held during the AAG Annual Meeting on Saturday, February 26 at 7 PM EST. The 29th annual round robin quiz competition concluded during a nail-biting final competition round between the student representatives from the Southwest AAG Division of the AAG and the Pacific Coast AAG Regional Division/Association of Pacific Coast Geographers competing head to head, with team SWAAG pulling out the victory. Undergraduate student Roger McClish (San Diego State University) was awarded the evening’s overall Most Valuable Player award for averaging 45 individual points per round. The World Geography Bowl Committee thanks Esri for sponsoring the event and appreciates the additional support for the event from YUM/KFC US, Edward Elgar Publishing, MIT Press, and Gamma Theta Upsilon.
Learn more about the World Geography Bowl
POLICY CORNER
AAG Collects Nearly 1,400 Signatures in Support of Ukraine
In response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked and unjustified attack, the AAG circulated a petition of support and solidarity with the people of Ukraine. Geography tells us that a people’s right to determine their future is inextricably linked with their sense of place and space. Russia’s unlawful invasion and occupation of Ukraine force the displacement and migration of countless communities, stripping them of their dignity and many basic rights. Furthermore, the human cost of this senseless conflict continues to climb as innocent civilians perish in the crossfire. Any country or political actor who threatens another sovereign nation’s domestic peace and right to self-govern is deserving of global condemnation.
The AAG is proud to have collected nearly 1,400 signatures from members and non-members alike. With this heartening display of support, we add our names to a growing chorus of voices around the world denouncing Putin’s actions. The petition with a list of finalized signatures can be found on our website.
In the News:
- Last week Congress passed a bipartisan Omnibus Appropriations Agreement for the remainder of FY22 which included $13.6 billion in Emergency Supplemental funding for Ukraine security and humanitarian needs and $15.6 billion in Emergency Supplemental funding for President Biden’s COVID-19 response to protect and treat against new variants, avoid shutdowns, and fight the virus abroad.
- On February 16, the White House announced the appointment of Dr. Alondra Nelson as the interim director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) effective immediately, replacing Eric Lander who stepped down last month amid allegations of workplace bullying. Dr. Nelson, a sociologist, is currently serving as OSTP Deputy Director for Science and Society. In addition, Dr. Francis Collins, who recently retired as Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has been asked to step in as the President’s Science Advisor and Co-Chair of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. Both Nelson and Collins will serve in their respective capacities until permanent leaders are nominated and confirmed.
- The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released a Request for Information (RFI) seeking stakeholder comments on the proposed framework for the NIH-Wide Strategic Plan for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) currently in development. This strategic plan is being developed in response to an Executive Order on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Workforce released in June 2021 by the Biden Administration.
Member News
March/April Member Updates
William G. Moseley, DeWitt Wallace Professor of Geography and Director of the Food, Agriculture & Society Program, Macalester College, has been named a 2022-2023 Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholars. The Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholars program offers undergraduates the opportunity to spend time with some of America’s most distinguished scholars. More.
Somayeh Dodge, an assistant professor in UC Santa Barbara’s Department of Geography, recently received a prestigious Early CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation and an Emerging Scholar Award from the Spatial Analysis and Modeling (AAG-SAM) Specialty Group of the American Association of Geographers. The awards recognize her work in advancing GIS and studying movement as an indicator and model of change through the MOVE lab at UCSB. More.
RESOURCES AND OPPORTUNITIES
2022 William T. Pecora Award Nominations Now Being Accepted
The William T. Pecora Award is presented annually to individuals or teams using satellite or aerial remote sensing that make outstanding contributions toward understanding the Earth (land, oceans and air), educating the next generation of scientists, informing decision makers or supporting natural or human-induced disaster response. Sponsored jointly by the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and established in 1974, the award honors the memory of Dr. William T. Pecora, former Director of the U.S. Geological Survey and Under Secretary, Department of the Interior, whose early vision and support helped establish the Landsat satellite program. Nominations for the 2022 awards must be received by the Award Committee by April 15, 2022.
Symposium on Hurricane Risk in a Changing Climate – Registration Open
Join scholars and practitioners in Key Largo, FL June 5-9, 2022 for the Symposium on Hurricane Risk in a Changing Climate. The main objective of this symposium is to foster communication among scientists, engineers, and practitioners in order to increase understanding of and better ways to deal with tropical cyclone risks. This Symposium differs from a traditional conference in that there is greater time allocated for each speaker to present and have Q and A in order to obtain greater depth to the discussion and there is a greater emphasis on networking to bring participants together for future collaborations.
Registration and more information available here
March Virtual Events Hosted by the Kauffman Foundation
Digital transformation is a process of “reimagining” business practices, culture, and customer experiences using digital technologies. What does increasing digitalization mean for new businesses? How are businesses adapting to this new landscape? How can digital entrepreneurship harness the power of technology to create access for communities that are historically excluded from the economic advantages of owning a business? And what are the potential pitfalls to look out for as we navigate this change? Join the Kauffman Foundation Thursday, March 24 at 10 a.m. CT for the Entrepreneurship Issue Forum, “Entrepreneurship in the Midst of Digital Transformation.” Register here.
The next virtual Early-Stage Researcher Professional Development session will take place on Friday, March 25 at 1 p.m. CT. Dr. Sari Kerr will talk about her academic and research career and answer questions from the audience. Kerr, an economist and a senior research scientist at the Wellesley Centers for Women (WCW) at Wellesley College, studies and focuses her teaching on the economics of labor markets, education, and families. This special session is open to 25 early-stage researchers. Register here.
Apply for Supplements for Human-Environment & Geographical Sciences Research Experience for Graduates and Undergraduates
To advance the integration of research and education, the Human-Environment and Geographical Sciences (HEGS) program in the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences invites researchers holding existing NSF awards from the HEGS program to request a Research Experience for Graduates (REG) or Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Supplement. This opportunity is not limited to students at the PI’s institution. Special consideration will be given to opportunities for students at institutions that lack doctoral programs in HEGS-related disciplines and at institutions that receive NSF funding relatively infrequently. Investigators are especially encouraged to support research and mentorship opportunities for students at Minority Serving Institutions. Requests for REG and REU supplements to support student summer research projects are requested by March 23, annually.
In Memoriam
Dr. Duane F. Marble passed quietly in his sleep on February 22, 2022. He earned three degrees from the University of Washington, earning his Ph.D. in 1959. He served on the faculties of the University of Oregon, the University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern University, the State University of New York at Buffalo, and The Ohio State University. Dr. Marble was instrumental in developing GIS as a strong, scientific academic endeavor. In 1993 he received an American Association of Geographers (AAG) Honors award and in 2011 he was awarded University Consortium of Geographical Information Science Fellow status in recognition of his remarkable impact. His presence in GIS education will continue through the Marble Fund for Geographic Science which he created in 2005. This Fund supports the William L. Garrison Award for Best Dissertation in Computational Geography and the Marble-Boyle Undergraduate Achievement Award, which are administered by the AAG. More.
William Bjorn “Bill” Beyers, long-time faculty colleague and former chair in the University of Washington’s Department of Geography, passed away in early February 2022. He was an alums of UW Department of Geography’s undergraduate and graduate programs (B.A. 1958, Ph.D. 1967), worked his entire career in this department, and held a passionate belief in the responsibility of the university to public service. Over 52 years as a member of the UW geography department, Bill served as the departmental cartographer, a teaching assistant, a research assistant, a faculty member, and two terms as chair. An economic- and urban geographer and regional scientist, Bill helped develop Seattle’s first “input-output model,” a statistical technique for modeling the inter-dependency of different economic sectors in a region, and created countless similar models for the State of Washington. More.
GEOGRAPHERS IN THE NEWS
- Out West climate change is real, right now – Pyro Geographer Crystal Kolden on possible solutions, YubaNet, January 26 2022.
- Shackleton’s Ship Endurance Discovered in the Antarctic by a team led by polar geographer John Shears, leading a team that discovered the100-year-old ship off the coast of Antarctica.
- Aimee Morse, a postgraduate student at University of Gloucestershire and Chair of the Royal Geographical Society Postgraduate Forum recognized for efforts during COVID-19.
EVENTS CALENDAR
- March/April Professional Development Events from the AAG
- June 5-9, 2022 – 2022 Symposium on Hurricane Risk in a Changing Climate
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