Newsletter – October 2019
PRESIDENT’S COLUMN
A Golden Opportunity for Geography or How Can we Harness the Growth in AP Human Geography?
By David Kaplan
Geography was not taught in my high school and I expect that was true in much of the United States… The foresight of a few geographers and the extraordinary assistance of the AAG enabled us to develop an exam for AP Human Geography in the 1990s. Today AP Human Geography is the fastest growing AP course, increasing five-fold over the past 10 years. It is one of the 10 highest enrolled of all AP subjects. No longer folded into “social studies” or “earth science,” geography—at least human geography—finally has a place of its own in the secondary school curriculum.
Call for chapter proposals: New AAG Book on Rocky Mountain West
For the first time since 2001, the AAG will be producing an edited book entitled Denver and the Rocky Mountain West as a companion to the AAG Annual Meeting. It will be edited by Michael Keables, with an editorial board of local experts. Papers are currently being solicited to this publication which will be available as a pdf to every conference attendee or be purchased as a spiral-bound copy for a small fee.
AAG BIDS FAREWELL
Doug Richardson Leaves a Legacy of Success for AAG
As the tenure of retiring AAG Executive Director Doug Richardson transitions to a new era and directorship, we would like to acknowledge our deep appreciation for his outstanding contributions to the AAG. Here we celebrate his legacy and far-reaching accomplishments, which have been transformative both for the Association and for geography.
ANNUAL MEETING
Upcoming Deadlines for #aagDENVER
Several important dates are forthcoming for registering and submitting abstracts to the 2020 AAG Annual Meeting. Registration rates will be increasing in all categories after the first registration deadline on October 9, 2019. Attendees wishing to submit an abstract for a paper presentation must do so before the deadline on October 30, 2019. Abstracts can be edited until February 21, 2020. As a reminder, the AAG accepts all submitted abstracts and organized sessions for presentation.
Register and submit your abstract today.
Explore Denver during the 2020 AAG Annual Meeting
Denver, a multicultural city home to more than 600,000 people, is the 19th largest city in the United States and the site of the 2020 AAG Annual Meeting. Situated at the base of the Rocky Mountains, Denver has also served as a bridge between the east and the west coasts historically, culturally, and economically. Between sessions at the AAG Annual Meeting, there is a variety of things to do to explore the Mile High City. The AAG has compiled some suggestions of places of interest on our Annual Meeting website to help plan your trip.
Read the list of suggested places to visit.
Register today for the 2020 AAG Annual Meeting
Registration is now open for the 2020 AAG Annual Meeting to be held April 6-10 in Denver, Colorado. The Early Bird registration rates offer the lowest rates across all levels of meeting participation. But hurry, Early Bird rates expire on October 9th!
- Register for the 2020 AAG Annual Meeting
- Decide which presentation type is right for you
- Book your hotel room in one of two hotels with an AAG attendee discounted rate
- Find out how to travel to meeting hotels by air or rail
- Suggest potential workshops or field trips by submitting a proposal
PUBLICATIONS
New Books in Geography — August Available
Read the latest titles in geography and related disciplines as found on the New Books in Geography list. Some of these books will be reviewed in The AAG Review of Books. The editors of The AAG Review of Books are happy to receive suggestions for potential reviews and potential reviewers. Reviews are commissioned by the editors, based on the appropriateness and qualifications of the reviewer, observing the usual avoidances of conflict of interest. Persons wishing to volunteer their reviewing services should have the requisite qualifications and demonstrable prior knowledge and engagement with the subject area, preferably through publications. Please contact the editors at aagrb [at] lsu [dot] edu.
Browse the full list of new books.
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
ASSOCIATION NEWS
Call to Action to Halt Execution of Detained Geographer
The AAG respectfully asks the scientific community to support Dr. Tashpolat Tiyip, former president of Xinjiang University and geography professor, who is at risk of execution in China. The two-year reprieve of his death sentence fast approaches and urgent intervention is needed. Please consider adding your signature to our sign-on letter and sharing it widely with your colleagues. Together, we can strengthen the voice of the scientific community and speak up for academic freedom and human rights.
2019 AAG Regional Meetings Get Underway
The nine regional divisions of the AAG will host their annual meetings throughout the U.S. during October and November. For those who have not recently attended a regional division meeting, they provide an excellent way to connect with geographers in your area in a more intimate setting than the AAG Annual Meeting. The regional division meetings also promote a supportive environment for student presentations of geographic research. Students are encouraged to apply for the AAG Council Award for Outstanding Graduate Student Paper at a Regional Meeting which awards students with travel funding to the AAG Annual Meeting.
AAG Welcomes Gavin Derleth for Fall 2019 Internship
The AAG is excited to have Gavin Derleth joining our staff as an intern for the fall semester. Gavin is a senior at The George Washington University. He is currently pursuing a B.A. in Geography and Political Science with a minor in Geographic Information Systems with hopes of becoming an urban planner. The AAG accepts applications from those interested in interning at the association on a year round basis.
Volunteer for the AAG Jobs and Careers Center
The AAG seeks volunteer panelists, career mentors, workshop leaders and session organizers for careers and professional development activities at the 2020 AAG Annual Meeting in Denver, CO. Individuals representing a broad range of employment sectors, organizations, academic and professional backgrounds, and racial/ethnic/gender perspectives are encouraged to apply. If interested, email careers [at] aag [dot] org, specifying topic(s) and activity(s) of interest, and attach a current C.V. or resume. For best consideration, please submit your information by November 9, 2019.
Learn more about the Jobs and Careers Center.
POLICY CORNER
Climate Change in the Spotlight
September saw a month of protests, marches and other activities aiming to pressure global leaders and bring international attention to the dangerous effects of climate change. These actions were organized in concert with the UN Climate Action Summit in which participating countries met to strategize on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and sought to impose standards of accountability. While the formal UN meetings were held at the highest levels of international leadership, the widespread protests that followed were notably led by students and young adult activists. The message sent to lawmakers seemed clear – the next generation is demanding action now to mitigate the climate change consequences they will inherit.
The AAG considers climate change a matter of high national concern and supports the community of scholars conducting research in the field, both geographers and non-geographers alike. At all levels of government we applaud efforts that recognize the urgency of anthropogenic climate change and policy initiatives that attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a timely fashion. Furthermore, our organization is constantly reevaluating how we can be better stewards of the environment through our Annual Meetings and beyond. We will continue to seek opportunities to elevate this policy issue with decision-makers and offer the diverse breadth of our academic and professional community as a resource.
In the News:
- With the September 30th end of fiscal year deadline fast approaching, several crucial funding bills in Congress are still not out of committees, nor prepared for floor votes. Last week, legislators passed a continuing resolution to postpone the deadline and extend current funding levels through November 21st, thus giving more time to mark up and pass all remaining appropriations bills.
- Congress is now on a two week recess but the House continues to actively work through the break on the presidential impeachment inquiry called for by Speaker Pelosi.
MEMBER NEWS
Profiles of Professional Geographers
Angeline Johnson was recently selected as a 2019-2020 FUSE Fellow assigned to a project entitled “Forging Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration for Community Economic Development.” After finding geography as a college freshman, Angeline believes core principles like scale and Tobler’s First Law have given her an invaluable perspective throughout her career. For geographers looking towards a future career path she recommends students “recognize the strength [they] bring as both a geographer and a broad thinker.”
Learn more about Geography Careers.
October Member Updates
The latest news about AAG Members.
Dr. Soe Myint, a professor of geography in the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning at Arizona State University, has been appointed as a Fulbright Canada Research Chair in Environmental Studies. As the only geographer to receive a Fulbright Canada Research Chair position for 2019-2020, Myint will spend the fall semester at the University of Regina researching water use policy on the plains. Learn more.
Dr. Glen MacDonald, geography professor at UCLA and AAG past president, was elected a Fellow of the Division of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences in the Royal Society of Canada. MacDonald is an international leader in developing long records of climatic change to address questions of forcing factors, teleconnections, and the impacts of climate change on ecosystems, evolutionary and extinction dynamics, and societal vulnerability. His studies, ranging from Arctic warming, the hydroclimatology of western North America, and sea level rise and the fate of coastal marshes, have included work in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. Learn more.
Dr. William Moseley, a geography professor at Macalester University, has been appointed to the International Steering Committee of the High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition of the UN Committee on World Food Security, a committee of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Moseley will serve on the 15 person committee through 2021. Learn more.
RESOURCES AND OPPORTUNITIES
Upcoming AAG Grants and Awards Deadlines – October 15 and November 1
Please consider submitting applications or nominations to four AAG grants and awards with approaching deadlines, three for students and one for career geographers. The AAG Marble-Boyle Undergraduate Achievement Awards aim to recognize excellence in academic performance by undergraduate students from the U.S. and Canada who are putting forth a strong effort to bridge geographic science and computer science. The biennial William L. Garrison Award for Best Dissertation in Computational Geography supports innovative research into the computational aspects of geographic science. The AAG Harold M. Rose Award for Anti-Racism in Research and Practice honors geographers who have served to advance the discipline through their research, and who have also had an impact on anti-racist practice. Lastly, the AAG Community College Travel Grants support outstanding students from community colleges, junior colleges, city colleges, or similar two-year educational institutions to attend the next AAG Annual Meeting. Community College Travel Grant applications are due November 1, 2019 while nominations and applications for the three awards are due October 15, 2019.
See all grants and awards deadlines.
CFP: AAG 2020 Geography Education Research Track
For the 2020 AAG Annual Meeting in Denver, CO, the National Center for Research in Geography Education (NCRGE) is welcoming abstracts and organized session proposals for a track of research-oriented sessions in geography education. This track aims to raise the visibility of research in geography education, grow the NCRGE research coordination network, and provide productive spaces for discussion about geography education research and the notion of what makes research in the field potentially transformative.
Download the full Call for Participation and submission guidelines.
IN MEMORIAM
Michael Bradford
The AAG is saddened to hear of the passing of Michael Bradford, a geographer and Professor at Manchester University. Central to Bradford’s career was his dedication to geography education, having served as President of the Geographical Association in the UK from 1999-2000 as well as having received numerous teaching awards and fellowships. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Sheila Kaplan, who is organizing a celebration of life for Bradford on October 19, 2019.
GEOGRAPHERS IN THE NEWS
- Pascale Roy-Léveillée, an associate professor of geography at Laurentian University, helps northern communities adapt to climate change
- Geographer Abby Frazier of the East West Center estimates monetary costs of Hawaii’s drought
- AAG Past President Derek Alderman discusses plantation tourism on 1A
EVENTS CALENDAR
- October 10-11, 2019 – East Lakes Regional Division Fall Meeting
- October 10-12, 2019 – Southwest Regional Division Fall Meeting
- October 11-12, 2019 – Great Plains/Rocky Mountains Regional Division Fall Meeting
- October 16-19, 2019 – Pacific Coast Regional Division Fall Meeting
- October 18-19, 2019 – Middle States Regional Division Fall Meeting
- October 18-19, 2019 – New England St. Lawrence Valley Regional Division Fall Meeting
- October 24-26, 2019 – West Lakes Regional Division Fall Meeting
- November 15, 2019 – Middle Atlantic Regional Division Fall Meeting
- November 23-26, 2019 – Southeast Regional Division Fall Meeting