Newsletter Geographers Spring, 2000
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Western Division, Canadian Association of Newsletter Geographers Spring, 2000 President's Column 2) Masters: D.H. Lewis and D.J Smith, UVIC, Tree Ring Laboratory, for "Tree I'd like to take this opportunity to summarize Rings as a Proxy Mass Balance Record: An our recent annual meeting Example Using Three Glaciers in for those who were not able to attend, and Strathcona Provincial Park, Vancouver to offer a commentary about the status of Island, BC"; our journal. 3) PhD: James A. LeClair, UVIC, for Conference 2000 "Children's Behaviour and the Urban Environment: Do Census Tracts Western Division's annual conference was Matter?". held in Abbotsford, British Columbia from March 9th to 11th, 2000. U Vic was not able, however, to regain the The meeting was hosted by the coveted SOGS scavenger hunt trophy. It Geography Department of the University went to the UCFV students. College of the Fraser Valley, and congratulations are in order for its faculty The WDCAG Coffee Mug of and students for a job well done. John Distinction - a small token for the Belec, the conference organizer, and those significant contributions individuals have who organized and led field trips in made to the WDCAG over the years particular deserve recognition. Over 200 - were presented to Leah Skretkowicz of people attended the conference, including a Kwantlen University College, Jim number of faculty and students from Windsor of CNC, and Lewis Robinson, UCFV's "sister" institution in Bellingham, professor emeritus at the University of Washington (University of Western British Columbia. Len Evenden presented Washington). This is the sixth year in a row the award to Lew Robinson. Lew, a that the Annual Meetings have attracted founder of the Division and its annual more than 175 registrants. The conference meetings, was honoured with a featured 46 papers and 8 posters, including standing ovation. Len Evenden was the two special sessions on geographic featured speaker at the Friday education. banquet. He led a virtual field trip through southern Ontario and Michigan as he The University of Victoria cleaned-up in the retraced a trip taken by Wreford Watson student presentation awards . The winners many years before. were: 3) Undergraduate: C.Day, N.Elmieh, L. Next year's conference will be hosted by Huisman, C.Larsman, C.Wood, D. the University of Calgary, March 8 Smith, and C. Laroque, UVIC, Tree to 10, 2001. The organizing committee, led Ring Laboratory, for "Neoglaciation at by Clarence Woudsma, has Saskatchewan Glacier, Banff National already begin preparations. Their Park"; conference web site is 2 http://www.ucalgary.ca/GEOG/WDCAG/wel journal and that it will accept, and come.html. encourages, proposals for theme issues. Volume 7, for example, featured papers on Alberta. Other examples of possible theme issues might be Fluvial Processes in BC, Western Geography Trends in Geographic Education, Border Landscapes, or the Okanagan. Theme The Division's journal, Western Geography, issues provide members with a means for was recently published and publishing a set of related papers, and mailed to members and subscribing provide focussed teaching resources. The institutions. You will note that this editor also encourages students to submit issue is a combined volume (8 and 9), a papers. Submissions can be sent to: situation that reflects a recent and ongoing shortage of submissions. At present the Editor, Western Geography editor does not have any submissions in Department of Geography hand for the next volume. The editor and College of New Caledonia the executive are well aware of the need of 3330 - 22nd Avenue many of its members to publish in widely Prince George, BC circulated and subject specific journals, and V2N 1P8 thus of the challenges faced by general interest, and regional focussed journals Submission guidelines appear at the end of such as our own. each volume (and soon on the Division's web site: Several of our sister publications have gone under (Albertan Geographer) or http://office.geog.uvic.ca/dept/wcag/wcag.ht have amalgamated with other journals m). (Ontario Geography and East Lakes Geographer). We would like to encourage Western Geography, as noted, is circulated members, nevertheless, to consider to all members of the Canadian Association Western Geography as a outlet for their of Geographers who reside in BC and research. Alberta and the adjacent states and territories. People who do not want to Western Geography, as Len Evenden become a member of the CAG, but want to documents in the current volume, has a subscribe to Western Geography, can long lineage. It began in 1960 as an obtain a membership in the Western occasional series that published papers Division only. The current cost is $20 ($10 presented at the Division's conferences. for students). An application is available on The name was changed several times over our web site. Members also receive our the years and the geographical scope newsletters and can take advantage of changed to reflect the addition of Alberta lower registration fees for our annual into the Division. The present name was conference. adopted to 1991. The editorial policy of the journal was also broadened at this time. We also need to increase our circulation Western Geography's mandate is to among institutions in BC and Alberta. Many "publish original scholarly work on of the institutions at which our members geographical themes or topics that work, and who participate in and host our emphasize western Canada and meetings, do not subscribe. In fact, adjacent areas, or that are written by according to the Outlook subsription western geographers from this region". database, twice as many BC post- Members should also be aware that secondary libraries do not subscribe as do. Western Geography is a refereed Two of the non-subscribers, furthermore, 3 are university libraries. The situation is watching, economic benefits of wildlife appear s to be similar in Alberta, although festivals, and the environmental all of its major universities subscribe. The background of university students. institutions that do subscribe are: Alberta, Calgary, CNC, Lethbridge, Malaspina, Selkirk, SFU, UBC, UCC, and the Vancouver Public Library. If your institution We will post advertisements for a sessional is not listed, please follow-up: check to replacement (to teach courses in intro see if your library does not subscribe, and if geomorphology, intro climatology, parks it does not, ask the librarians to consider a and wilderness, and intro environmental subscription to Western Geography. science). Not only will you get a great resource at a To learn more about our program, email: good price for researching and teaching about our region, you will also help our [email protected] or bottom line and increase the status of visit our website: our journal (and thus help address the submission situation). Institutional http://www.augustana.ab.ca/departments/g subscription enquiries can be directed to eography. the Editor at the address above. Dr. Ross Nelson, University College of the Glen Hvenegaard, Ph.D. Cariboo email: [email protected] Augustana Douglas College The geography department continues to Elizabeth Peerless has retired. Don contribute heavily to the Environmental McPhee has been hired as regular faculty Studies program which is growing. member. Proposals are in the works for a Environmental Science major. The Department of Geography is reviewing its program and redeveloping the Geography Web Pages. Hopefully, both Glen Hvenegaard attended LEAD projects will be completed by the fall. (Leadership for Environment and Development) Canada session in Ottawa in Earl Noah October. He will also attend a LEAD International session in Brazil in late March. He is looking forward to the field trip to the Atlantic rainforest and international Kwantlan University College contacts. Future sessions will be held in Ottawa and Russia. The department will be offering two new second year courses next year (00-01) as part of the two year Associate of Arts Glen will be on sabbatical during the next (Geography) Degree. academic year. He will continue research on the human dimensions of whale The two courses, Geog 2390 Geographic Information and Data Analysis, and 4 Geog 2395 Cartographic Techniques, serve geography programmes, the department to fill a gap in our present has a dedicated computer curriculum regarding geographic lab with six computers with IDRISI and techniques. Our traditional first and ARC-Info software, scanners and printers. second year offerings remain intact and We hope to add one computer (and well subscribed. upgraded software) per year to make up a full complement of 10. The department is also planning a two-day retreat this spring to address the future Daniel Lee presented a paper at the recent direction of the department in terms of an WCAG meetings at UCFV and will be expansion of our present second year upgrading his skills in GIS in a part-time offerings as well as the progress of our programme next year while serving as our applied degree development. Lab Co-ordinator. David Jordan and Cherie Ens will both continue next year as sessional instructors. Carl Tracie has On the faculty watch,Rod Fowler was completed the bulk of research on elected as Vice President of the WDCAG Doukhobor village settlement in British at the recent UCFV meeting. Leah Columbia and has begun a rough draft in Skretkowicz will serve as member at the preparation of a book. large. Kwawu Agbemenu will return from an educational leave in September. Carl Tracie Leah Sketkowicz Trinity Western University Simon Fraser University The Department of Geography is in a state of transition with the resignation of Dr. Lance Werner last summer. He left an 18- We have just completed the hiring of three year teaching career at TWU and is sorely new faculty members in the Department of missed.