AAG Newsletter

A screenshot of AAG Executive Director Gary Langham and AAG President Amy Lobben taken during a virtual interview

An Interview with AAG Executive Director Gary Langham (Part 2)

Last month I shared Part 1 of an interview I conducted with AAG's Executive Director Gary Langham to help the membership learn a bit about his perspectives, goals, and personal…

July 2020 Issue of the ‘Annals of the AAG’ Now Available

The AAG is pleased to announce that Volume 110, Issue 4, July 2020 of the Annals of the American Association of Geographers is now ;A full list of contents is below.…

May 2020 Issue of the ‘Annals of the AAG’ Now Available

The AAG is pleased to announce that Volume 110, Issue 3 (May 2020) of the Annals of the American Association of Geographers is now available. A full list of contents is below.…

President's Column

An Interview with AAG Executive Director Gary Langham (Part 2)

Amy LobbenOctober 3, 20202020-10-03T18:31:16-04:00

Last month I shared Part 1 of an interview I conducted with AAG's Executive Director Gary Langham to help the membership learn a bit about his perspectives, goals, and personal history that led him to…

An Interview with AAG Executive Director Gary Langham (Part 1)

Amy Lobben August 31, 2020 Comments Off2020-10-04T19:32:40-04:00

While the AAG membership elects some of its governance ( president, vice president, Council), the temporal constant in leadership is the Executive Director (ED). Historically, his tenure spans multiple presidents and many dozens of councilors.…

The Invisible and The Silent

Amy Lobben July 31, 2020 Comments Off2020-09-03T11:46:19-04:00

I am the parent of an adult child with intellectual and developmental disabilities and have spent the past two decades watching how society (dis)engages with him. People avert their eyes. People pretend not to see…

The Spatial Scale of ‘We’

Amy Lobben June 29, 2020 Comments Off2020-08-31T15:51:52-04:00

Every day around my town, I see signs of encouragement, most frequently — “We’re All In This Together.” That statement refers to the coronavirus pandemic, suggesting and assuming that we are all equally engaged in…

Making Data Meaningful Or Geography’s Contribution to Data Science

David H. Kaplan June 1, 2020 Comments Off2020-06-30T17:17:39-04:00

Geography has always been about data. After all, the field was founded and developed over the search for more and better information. It was 200 years ago that Alexander von Humboldt, perhaps the most famous…

Annual Meeting

What will be Presented at the 2020 AAG Meeting?

Jeong Chang SeongFebruary 25, 20202020-04-01T11:14:55-04:00

Jeong Chang Seong, Chul Sue Hwang, Ana Stanescue, Yubin Lee, and Youngho Lee A total of 4,893 papers and posters are scheduled to be presented at the Denver AAG Annual Meeting in April this year…

Introducing the “Climate Action Task Force”

Patricia M. Martin and Joseph Nevins October 28, 2019 Comments Off2019-12-02T17:00:43-05:00

In response to the current climate crisis, last spring we circulated a petition among various geography listservs requesting that the AAG Council take significant action “to reduce CO2 emissions related to the Annual Meeting.” The…

Social Media at #aagDC

Emily Fekete March 19, 2019 Comments Off2019-03-19T11:14:27-04:00

We’re getting closer to the 2019 AAG Annual Meeting! Whether you will be attending the meeting all week, for a few days, or looking to follow the action from afar, there are plenty of ways…

The Chesapeake Bay: Destruction and Rehabilitation in the Nation’s Largest Estuary

RDK Herman December 1, 2018 Comments Off2019-04-23T09:44:54-04:00

It’s another drizzly day on the Chesapeake, and the boat we are on bobs gently on the opaque, mud-colored water. A crusty old crabber from Tangier Island, by the nickname of Captain Cook (use of…

AAG Names Rita Colwell as the 2019 Honorary Geographer

Emily Fekete November 14, 2018 Comments Off2018-11-14T11:03:16-05:00

Rita Colwell (Photo by Sam Kittner) The American Association of Geographers has named Rita Colwell, the first woman to be director of the National Science Foundation (NSF), as its 2019 AAG Honorary Geographer. Rita Colwell…

Association News

AAG Welcomes Fall 2020 Interns

StaffOctober 5, 20202020-10-05T17:12:06-04:00

Two new interns have joined the AAG staff this fall! The AAG would like to welcome Jenna and Mei to the organization. We are also grateful to have one of our summer interns, Sekour, continue…

AAG Welcomes Summer 2020 Interns

Staff June 19, 2020 Comments Off2020-06-19T15:23:22-04:00

Two new interns have joined the AAG staff this summer! The AAG would like to welcome Sekour and Sarah to the organization. Sekour Mason recently graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park with a…

2018 NAEP Geography Report Card Offers Crucial Insight into Geographic Literacy

Staff March 30, 2020 Comments Off2020-03-30T13:52:44-04:00

April 23, 2020 marks the date for The National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB)’s release of the 2018 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Geography Report Card, along with the nation’s 2018 assessments of History and…

AAG Announces 2020 AAG Award Recipients

Staff February 24, 2020 Comments Off2020-07-08T15:25:35-04:00

The American Association of Geographers congratulates the individuals and entities named to receive an AAG Award. The awardees represent outstanding contributions to and accomplishments in the geographic field. Formal recognition of the awardees will occur…

AAG Announces 2019 Book Awards

Staff February 20, 2020 Comments Off2020-02-20T17:22:56-05:00

The AAG is pleased to announce the recipients of the three 2019 AAG Book Awards: the John Brinckerhoff Jackson Prize, the AAG Globe Book Award for Public Understanding of Geography, and the AAG Meridian Book…

Featured Articles

Geospatial Brain Power

StaffDecember 23, 20192019-12-23T16:27:36-05:00

Does learning GIS improve spatial reasoning capabilities in high schoolers? A team from six universities is studying the students—and their brains—to find out. A group of researchers from six American universities are studying what effect…

The Geography of Access to Health Services

Estella M. Geraghty August 2, 2019 Comments Off2019-08-02T09:44:50-04:00

According to a 1993 Institute of Medicine report, access to health services means "the timely use of personal health services to achieve the best health outcomes." Geographic access is listed as one of three distinct components…

Beyond Compactness: A New Measure to Evaluate Congressional Districts

Diana C. Lavery May 2, 2019 Comments Off2019-05-02T16:08:38-04:00

Redrawing congressional district boundaries, an activity that happens every ten years following the decennial census, may be the most consequential application of geography in the United States. As congressional elections have become less competitive, many…

AI and GIS: Finally Delivering on the promise

Esri Staff March 28, 2019 Comments Off2019-03-28T13:06:35-04:00

The field of artificial intelligence (AI) isn't new, and neither are its grand promises. AI as an academic pursuit has its roots in the 1950s. Early AI researchers were filled with optimism, but—despite some initial…

Rights of Nature: The New Paradigm

Cameron La Follette March 6, 2019 Comments Off2019-03-06T09:24:02-05:00

Rights of Nature is a short-hand term for a form of ecological governance that both provides for and prioritizes Nature’s right to flourish. It also provides for various subsidiary rights, such as the right to…

Resources & Opportunities

News from the Human-Environment and Geographical Sciences (HEGS) Program at the National Science Foundation (NSF), September 2020

StaffAugust 31, 20202020-09-14T17:14:43-04:00

Update 9/15/2020: In response to concerns raised by members of the AAG, the NSF has clarified its announced changes to the Human-Environment and Geographical Sciences program (HEGS), formerly known as the Geography and Spatial Sciences…

Participate in AAG’s New Career and Research Mentors Program

Staff August 26, 2020 Comments Off2020-08-26T18:28:40-04:00

Within AAG’s COVID-19 Rapid Response Task Force, members proposed the creation of a mentoring program in a time when students and colleagues may have limited access to previous peer and professional contacts and mentors, while…

Participatory Forum on New Requirements for Ethical Geographic Science in Rapid Research

Staff August 26, 2020 Comments Off2020-09-17T10:08:34-04:00

COVID-19 calls upon researchers to navigate a fast-paced scientific inquiry process under enormous public scrutiny. The rapid funding mechanisms, abundance of geographic data from emerging technologies, and the “real-time” expectations and needs of governments have…

Digging Deeper into K-12 Geography Achievement and Why It Matters: A NAEP Data Workshop

Staff August 4, 2020 Comments Off2020-08-05T13:28:47-04:00

One of the most powerful sources of data for understanding student achievement is the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) program. Although many people know about NAEP through media coverage of its reports on the…

ICPSR provides access to carefully curated geography-related data

Bing She, Coline Dony December 23, 2019 Comments Off2020-01-06T13:28:31-05:00

The Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) is an international, member-based association of more than 780 academic institutions and research organizations. ICPSR maintains an archive of more than 250,000 research data files in…

Of Note

Geographers Recognized for National Research on COVID-19

StaffOctober 16, 20202020-10-16T10:57:30-04:00

Projects address mobility patterns, access to health care and food systems, racial and disability disparities during the pandemic WASHINGTON, DC…Geographers have been recognized in 16 research and educational fellowships from The Geospatial Software Institute (GSI)…

AAG Highlights Advancing Discipline Diversity During Geography Awareness Week at Michigan State University

Staff October 5, 2020 Comments Off2020-10-06T18:14:43-04:00

Photo 1 Yoruba Richen, filmmaker and director, speaks during the AAG ceremony at MSU during Geography Awareness Week in 2019. (Photo credit: Jacqueline Hawthorne) As part of its annual celebration of Geography Awareness Week, the…

Welcome to Clancy Wilmott, and thank you to John Kelmelis: AAG representatives on the Board of Directors of the GIS Certification Institute

Staff August 31, 2020 Comments Off2020-08-31T16:23:52-04:00

The GIS Certification Institute or GISCI was established in 2002 by member organizations: Association of American Geographers (AAG), Geospatial Information and Technology Association (GITA), National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC), University Consortium of Geographic Information…

The “Nation’s Report Card” on Geography Reveals a World of Opportunities

Michael Solem May 18, 2020 Comments Off2020-06-30T17:22:02-04:00

Periodically since 1994, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has released its “report card” on geography education in America, providing a snapshot of student achievement. The most recent assessment was conducted in 2018 with…

Geographers Act on COVID19

Staff March 30, 2020 Comments Off2020-03-31T17:05:31-04:00

GeoDS Lab at University of Wisconsin, Madison. County-level Spring 2020 travel data from March shows thousands of trips generated in the , which may help explain the rapid growth of infection cases across the country.…

Publications

AAG Welcomes New Editor of AAG Review of Books, Thanks Outgoing Editor

StaffJune 30, 20202020-07-01T14:36:49-04:00

The AAG is pleased to announce Debbie Hopkins as the new editor of the AAG Review of Books. The AAG sincerely thanks founding editor Kent Mathewson, whose vision and ideas have shaped the AAG Review…

July 2020 Issue of the ‘Annals of the AAG’ Now Available

Staff June 18, 2020 Comments Off2020-06-19T14:32:57-04:00

The AAG is pleased to announce that Volume 110, Issue 4, July 2020 of the Annals of the American Association of Geographers is now ;A full list of contents is below. The Annals contains original, timely,…

June 2020 Issue of the ‘African Geographical Review’ Now Available

Staff June 5, 2020 Comments Off2020-06-19T14:31:11-04:00

The AAG is pleased to announce that Volume 39, Issue 2 (June 2020) of the African Geographical Review is now ;The full table of contents for this issue is below and can also be accessed…

June 2020 Issue of ‘GeoHumanities’ Now Available

Staff May 28, 2020 Comments Off2020-05-28T14:40:19-04:00

The AAG is pleased to announce that Volume 6, Issue 1 (June 2020) of GeoHumanities is now available. GeoHumanities is the newest journal of the American Association of Geographers. It features articles that span conceptual…

Spring 2020 Issue of ‘The AAG Review of Books’ Now Available

Staff April 17, 2020 Comments Off2020-07-01T11:53:54-04:00

Volume 8, Issue 2 of The AAG Review of Books has now been published online. This quarterly online journal publishes scholarly reviews of recent books related to geography, public policy and international affairs. It also features review essays reflecting on several…

Addenda

Researchers with disabilities in the academic system

Aleksandra (Sasha) Kosanic, Nancy Hansen, Susanne Zimmermann-Janschitz, Vera ChouinardSeptember 1, 20182018-10-02T17:08:07-04:00

Although researchers with disabilities are an exceptional category, they are a still very much underrepresented group in Academia worldwide. With billion people with disabilities worldwide, the percentage of academic positions filled in by academics with…