The 2012 Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers was held in New York City, February 24-28, and hosted over 7,000 geographers, GIS specialists, and environmental scientists whose 4,000+ presentations, posters, and workshops were dedicated to the latest in research and applications in geography, sustainability, and GIScience. A paper session titled “Reflections on Geographic Information Science” was held in honor of Mike Goodchild on February 27. The session was organized by Karen Kemp (University of Southern California) and Nina Lam (Louisiana State University) and sponsored by the Geographic Information Science and Systems Specialty Group, Esri, and the Spatial Analysis and Modeling Specialty Group; speakers included Paul Longley (University College London), Luc Anselin and Sergio Rey (Arizona State University), Francis Harvey (University of Minnesota), Don Janelle (University of California, Santa Barbara), May Yuan (University of Oklahoma), and Werner Kuhn (Institute for Geoinformatics, University of Muenster).
The paper session was followed by a panel session in the evening which “celebrated the scholarship and contributions of Dr. Michael Goodchild to GIScience and Geography by his students, colleagues, and friends upon his retirement.” Douglas Richardson, the AAG Executive Director, made the opening remarks, and speakers included Dawn Wright (Esri), Nina Lam (Louisiana State University), Jay Lee (Kent State University), Karen Kemp (University of Southern California), Nigel Waters (George mason University), Mei-Po Kwan (Ohio State University), David Mark (SUNY Buffalo), and Keith Clarke, Alan Glennon, and Don Janelle, all from UCSB.
Dr. Goodchild retires this year after 43 years of academic excellence and research. The UCSB Department of Geography and the Center for Spatial Studies will hold a celebration and reception for him on campus on May 24, 2012, as well as a hike in his honor in Rattlesnake Canyon the following day (details to be announced).
Photo credits: Keith Clarke and Don Janelle
