Grad students Micah Brachman, Gargi Chaudhuri, and Indy Hurt organized a UCSB Geography Department “Event” in conjunction with this year’s Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, March 22-27. The committee organized several fundraisers to finance the affair (including bake sales, car washes, and auctions), and Indy created an AAG Conference blog to solicit donations and to showcase the “70’s theme event” which was a cross between a departmental party and an alumni reunion. The “polyester party” was held at the Peppermill Fireside Lounge (next to the Riviera Hotel) on March 25th, 5:30pm to 8:30pm.
UCSB Geography had good reason to party it up at the AAG. Not only were we exceptionally well represented (see the listing of UCSB participants here), but Geography faculty, researchers, and alumnae won several major awards: Reginald Golledge received the AAG’s 2008 Enhancing Diversity Award, Don Janelle received the 2009 Ronald F. Abler Honors for Distinguished Service, grad student Kate Deutsch was the winner of the AAG Transportation Geography Specialty Group student paper competition at the Master’s level, grad student Ryan Perroy won the Geomorphology Specialty Group Graduate Student Paper Competition, and alumna Shaunna Burbidge (PhD 2008) was one of four finalists for the AAG’s 2009 Nystom Award for a paper derived from the best recent dissertation in the discipline.
And, yes, the “polyester party” was fab, funky, and far out! Indy has posted lots of pictures of the blowout on the AAG Conference blog here, which also gives a blow by blow description of the raffle prizes handed out, as well as details of UCSB’s impressive attendance at the Conference. Indy summed up both the Event and the Conference by commenting, “Overall, it was a great night and, as promised, unforgettable…In all, it was a great conference. I’m glad to be home and rehydrated though…”
