Geography and Careers - Essay Example

Insert Question The AAG, Membership and Activities AAG, an abbreviation for the Association of American Geographers, is anon-profit scientific and educational society. Since its inception in 1904, the AAG has been at the forefront in advancing the subject of geography. Professor Lewis of the Pennsylvania State University describes geography as the only subject that asks one to look at the world and try to make sense of it. He adds that it is an area that never stops in excitement and that is what geography is all about. Geography gives the perspective to answer questions about the world with advanced technology and a solid knowledge of the world while in addition, amongst others, helping in managing natural and urban environments, analyzing the evolving relationship between people and places, planning transportation routes, investigating sustainable land use worldwide, creating geographic management systems for industries and government agencies and helping understand and restore natural ecosystems (Association of American Geographers, 1). The society boasts members from more than 60 nations who come together to share interests in theory, methods and practice in geography. This they do via the AAG’s Annual Meeting, scholarly journals, the online AAG Newsletter, amongst other avenues. Through the activities of its affinity groups and the more than 60 specialty groups, the AAG promotes deliberations amongst members and with scholars in associated fields. The meetings and activities of regional divisions serve to offer opportunities for networking amongst members in any part of the globe. The AAG membership is predominantly comprised of geographers and related professionals who work in the public, private and academic sectors. These members serve in a wide variety of professions from across the world. Over 300 volunteer leaders serve on the Council of the AAG and other committees and groups. The AAG uses educational and research programs and projects to enhance geographic understanding, learning and literacy across the globe and with its headquarters currently in Washington, D.C, the association strives to promote professional studies in geography while encouraging the application of geographic research in education, business, government and related fields. It is reputed for its numerous partnerships as well as developing and managing programs, outcomes to the policy making sector and international outreach. The AAG has its industry and faculty awards and honors which offer recognition to brilliant contributors in the profession. Grant programs are also available to support a number of geographic activities for the growth of the subject and the society at large (Association of American Geographers, 1). The Council, comprising elected officers and councilors, the President and the ex-officio executive director, forms the governing body of the association with the roles and responsibilities of the council, executive committee and the executive director all stated in the constitution of the AAG. The association is organized into 9 divisions representing different regions of the United States but is also open to geographers studying or working abroad, while also highly encouraging participation from developing nations. The AAG elections are conducted online with all members eligible to take part. The online voting process makes voting a lot easier for the members and easier to manage. Data concerning the nomination and election process are available for all in “Section 2, Methods of Nomination and Election” of the AAG constitution and bylaws. All eligible voters receive an email with an ID voting password and a link to a voting page where they authenticate their identity. Once authenticated, the voter has access to a tamper-proof electronic ballot. Once the ballot is completed and submitted, the results are encrypted and kept anonymous. The voter then receives a receipt and is prevented from voting in the same election a second time. Paper ballots for those who requested them are counted at the end of the election process and added to electronic totals. Final results are published in March. Members who prefer not to vote are equally free not to do so. The role of the AAGs Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Committee is to support the free development of scientific inquiry and exchange and to investigate incidents where geographic scholars have been restricted in the pursuit of their work. The Association of American of Geographers, for example, acting through its Executive Committee and National Council, and on the recommendation of its standing Committee on Scientific Freedom and Responsibility, condemns the recent attempt by the leadership of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, through its open records request, to intimidate Professor William Cronon.  William Cronon is the Frederick Jackson Turner and Vilas Research Professor of History, Geography and Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and an eminent figure in the fields of historical and environmental geography.  Professor Cronon is also a citizen-scholar in the best tradition, making his research available to the public in a variety of venues. The AAG holds that the use of Wisconsins Open Records Law to acquire Professor Cronon’s university emails, after he posted a portion of his research online, is a reprehensible attempt to stifle this public voice (Association of American Geographers, 1). In addition, the AAG urges the US Government to take a leadership role in addressing climate change, support open scientific debate about the issue, and fully cooperate with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA) of the Arctic Council, the national science academies, and other governmental and nongovernmental organizations, as well as with the international community of countries, to better scientifically understand climate change and to develop sound policies to attenuate greenhouse gas emissions. The AAG further enjoins the US Government to act upon commitments made by the US in the UNFCCC, May 9, 1992, and ratify the Kyoto Protocol and Rulebook that is presently international law. The AAG also encourages geographers to continue to engage in climate change research, education, scientific assessments, policy discussions, and political action, as they deem appropriate. Along the same vein, the AAG urges the Obama Administration to include geography and geospatial education in its Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and ESEA Blueprint for Reform proposals while also imploring Congress to include authorizations and appropriations for geography education consistent with other core academic subjects for K‐12, as part of a reauthorized ESEA. Moreover, the AAG has asked Congress to enhance geography teacher training by passing legislation such as the Teaching Geography is Fundamental Act. The Association of American Geographers, acting through its Executive Committee and National Council, strongly condemns the recent prohibition of National Science Foundation (NSF) funding for political science research. The AAG feels this prohibition poses a threat to academic freedom and undermines the federal government’s ability to fund important projects on topics, such as the effectiveness of institutions within the political systems or how the public perceives and reacts to events of civic importance. For these reasons therefore, the AAG unreservedly supports the American Political Science Association (APSA) and the Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) in their efforts to resist this assault on the integrity of academic research (Association of American Geographers, 1). Question 2: Membership One can join the AAG as an individual member or as a corporate organization. This can be achieved by clicking on the membership section on the webpage then proceeding to click the ‘Join/ Renew Now’ option which is followed with a series of pages that require filling in with personal (for individual membership) and company (for corporate membership) details. After successfully filling in the forms, successful membership application is confirmed and an e-mail notification verifying the same sent to new member. For individual membership, an interested applicant is eligible for membership upon payment of dues. Members can nominate candidates and take part in the voting processes, hold offices and take part in meetings, programs and other activities and services of the association. Individual membership benefits include two quarterly journals (the Annals of the Association of American Geographers and The Professional Geographer), the Monthly AAG Newsletter, optional membership in any of the AAG specialty groups, free subscription to the Geo Spatial Solutions, reduced prices on AAG publications, reduced registration fees at the AAG Annual Meeting or any such AAG sponsored meeting, reduced membership fees for affiliated international geography societies, subscription to Professional Surveyor, discounted life and liability insurance and discounts on Hertz rental cars (Association of American Geographers, 1). Corporations, firms, institutions, libraries, departments and other scientific education, and/ or business associations interested in joining AAG can do so under the corporate/ institutional membership category for only 5,000USD per annum and receive more than 17,000USD worth of products and services. Benefits of corporate membership include 50% discounts on the booth at the Annual Meeting, Annual Meeting tote bag insert, free annual pre-attendee list, free annual conference post-attendee list, free advertisement on the AAG website, one free mailing list rental each quarter, free postings in jobs in geography, four free memberships for employees and a discounted rate of 100 dollars for each additional member, discount for employee members to the Annual Meeting, access to 10,000+ members, more than 60 specialty groups and numerous collaborating organizations as well as participation in Annual Meeting Special Sessions and Presentations. The developing regions membership is a new category dedicated for geographers from developing nations. They basically receive the same benefits as individual members. In general, the benefits of membership to the AAG include meeting and networking with other geographers and related professionals, learning about new approaches, methods and techniques, chance at developing professional skills and advancing careers, staying on top of current geographic research in one’s specialty, receiving special grants, honors and awards and joining a community of scholars, educators and practitioners (Association of American Geographers, 1). Question 3: Jobs, Careers and Trends The AAG Jobs in Geography Center is a source of academic jobs in geography and geography related fields in the public, private and non-profit sectors, connecting employers with over 10,000 potential employees worldwide. The center equally offers a variety of careers resources to answer questions, guide career planning and help one find a job. Access to available jobs is open to both members and non-members but AAG members receive an exclusive 14-day period to new job opportunities. The section continually adds new information, insights and advice concerning professional developments and career planning from ongoing research and education projects like EDGE and ‘enhancing diversity’ initiatives. The ‘Geography Can Take You There Section’ delves into how young people make their career path choices, with claims derived upon facts and knowledge about the current state of the discipline of geography. The poster aims to raise greater awareness of the growing opportunities in geography. The site claims the field of geography is so rich in possibilities that it would be confusing at the least, or at worst impossible to totally convey in a one-page promotional poster the full scope of opportunities that geography avails. In 2004 the United States’ Department of Labor released a statement highlighting geospatial technology as one of the most important emerging and evolving fields in the technology industry. The US Department of Labor further projects “much faster than average” growth, in excess of 20% or more, in jobs for geographers, geoscientists, cartographers, urban and regional planners, and other geographic professionals, with projected needs of upwards of 15,000 additional employees in each of these career fields between 2008-2018. Since trends indicate that members of underrepresented groups exit in large numbers at different transition points, the opportunity that geography offers for employment at multiple pathways—from technical positions with a GIS certificate, to professional posts for associates, bachelor’s and beyond —makes it an attractive choice for job-conscious youth and minorities in particular (Association of American Geographers, 1). Most people who are ultimately attracted to the discipline of geography are motivated by much larger aspirations than good salaries. The opportunity to make a difference in the world, in whatever expression that takes, is one of the most frequently cited reasons why current geography students, researchers, and practitioners explain their career choice. This desire to make a difference by using the intellectual approaches and conceptual tools of the discipline may be, in fact, one of the clearest characteristics that geographers as a community have in common. At least three recent global trends can be identified as contributing to a renaissance of geography and its potential for making a difference in society and the world, especially since the turn of the century, when we now find ourselves “confronted by insurmountable opportunities”. These include globalization at an increasing pace and scale, phenomena that compel greater understanding of the world, places, people, and natural systems that affect us as a planet and as global citizens and consumers. It includes a recent proliferation of geographic technologies, once fairly obscure and now pervasive in our daily lives, such as GPS in cell phones and cars, online mapping at your fingertips, cable news reports using spatial visualizations, and many more applications in modern business and government services that underlie operations, planning, and progress in all sectors everywhere we live and work.  It also includes an academic trend toward greater inter-disciplinarity, especially a renewed focus on big questions that matter but that requires a breadth of knowledge and multiple fields to tackle. Geography’s long-standing intellectual traditions in crossing those usual disciplinary boundaries are now better understood, increasingly seen as relevant and more widely respected in scholarly circles (Association of American Geographers, 1). There are a number of trends that have produced unprecedented growth in the field of geography. For one, geography is experiencing a resurgence as an academic discipline for tackling issues of local, national, and global significance (such as climate change, immigration, economic trade) by attracting scholars drawn to its conceptual frameworks for interdisciplinary and integrative research. Also, undergraduate degrees in geography at U.S. institutions of higher education grew by about 49 percent (from approximately 2,900 to 4,320) between 1987-1988 and 2007-2008.  During that same time period, master’s degrees in geography grew by over 50 percent (from approximately 580 to 882) and doctoral degrees grew by about 71 percent (from approximately 150 to 257).  These rates of growth outpace most other disciplines. In the five-year period between 1999-2000 and 2004-2005, the size of the tenure-track faculty in geography departments offering degrees through the Ph.D. grew by 8 percent (from 721 to 780).  Similarly, the same institutions witnessed growth in undergraduate majors (up 12 percent from 4,552 to 5,094), master’s students (up 14 percent from 1,120 to 1,279), and Ph.D. students (up nearly 11 percent from 1,076 to 1,191).   Liberal arts and comprehensive institutions also experienced growth in geography faculty and student populations during this period. The number of high school students taking Advanced Placement Human Geography grew from 3,272 in 2002 to 50,730 in 2009 (Association of American Geographers, 1). Question 4: What Geographers Do Geography is special in connecting social sciences with natural sciences. Geography is divided into two main branches – human geography and physical geography. Human geography is concerned about the spatial aspects of human existence while physical geographers on the other hand study patterns of climate, land forms, vegetation, soils and water. Geographers use many tools and techniques in their works which include Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Remote Sensing, Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and online mapping such as Google Earth. Some of the many subfields within geography are geomorphology, weather and climate, biogeography, natural hazards, economic geography, political geography, cultural geography, population geography, human-environment interactions, cartography, GIS, photogrammetry, remote sensing, field methods, spatial statistics, regional geography, spatial thinking, global perspective, interdisciplinary perspective and diversity perspective. Of personal interest is cultural geography which entails knowing and applying geographic information about culture and cultural processes such as religion, language, ethnicity, diffusion, meaning of landscapes, cultural significance of a place and so on. In this sub-category, one can specialize as a tour guide or escort, as an area, ethnic and cultural studies teacher, as an interpreter and translator, as a historic preservationist or as a writer/ editor (Association of American Geographers, 1). Question 5: Where Geographers Work The page asserts that geographers can pursue fruitful careers in many fields such as in business, local, state or federal government agencies, and non-profit organizations, amongst others. The education sector which awards at least two-year degrees, continuing education and informal education organizations as well as higher education institutions includes K through 12 institutions, universities and colleges. Educators have the option of working either in educational administration or in academic research positions. Independent businesses, usually operating at local or regional scale, are privately owned by individuals or small groups. Corporations on the other hand are accountable to their stakeholders and operate at national and international levels. According to conducted surveys, close to 2 million people (1.8% of the US workforce) are employed by the federal government while state and local governments employ 19.8 million workers (Association of American Geographers, 1). Geographys emphasis on addressing real-world problems and issues is excellent preparation for public sector employment, particularly at the local and state levels where much policy innovation, implementation, and bottom-line responsibility reside. In addition, roughly nine percent of the U.S. workforce (12 million individuals) is employed by an estimated 1.4 million nonprofit organizations, whose causes and values span the entire political spectrum. Because nonprofits typically strive to create a better world (as defined by their mission statements), they offer great opportunities for job seekers hoping to make a difference (Association of American Geographers, 1). Question 6: Salary Data and Trends The Salary Data and Trends section enables geographers explore the diversity of career opportunities available to them, as well as retrieve data on salaries, projected growth, demand for key skills and a lot more to guide on career planning. For each occupation available, a geographer can access a description with related job titles, salary and trends data as well as links for further exploration. I’m particularly fascinated by the Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting Industry which entails establishments predominantly in growing crops, rearing livestock, harvesting timber, harvesting fish and other animals from a farm, ranch or their natural habitats. Marine Engineers and Naval Architects who basically design, develop, and evaluate the operation of marine vessels, ship machinery, and related equipment, such as power supply and propulsion systems, include such job titles as Marine Engineer, Engineer, Marine Surveyor, Project Engineer, Consulting Engineer, Hull Outfit Supervisor, Marine Consultant, Marine Engineering Consultant, Electrical Systems Designer, Marine Design Engineer, Naval Architect, Naval Architect Specialist, Piping Designer, Designer, Engineering Manager, Marine Architect, Marine Structural Designer, Structural Engineer. In 2008, the median annual salary for marine engineers and naval architects was 75,000 USD. A similar figure was observed in 2009. The median annual salary rose in the consequent years – 80,000USD in 2010, 85,000USD in 2011 and 89,000USD in 2012 (Association of American Geographers, 1). Question 7: Bible Specialty Group One of the notable specialty groups of the AAG is the Bible Specialty Group. It has a total of 71 members. The dues for joining the group are 1 dollar for both regulars and students alike. The group aims to use the Bible as a source of geographic information for the study of the geography of ancient Israel (Association of American Geographers, 1). Question 8: Reflection on Assignment After carefully analyzing the AAG website and completing questions 1-7, I have been left amazingly shocked about the plethora of job opportunities involved with the subject of geography. I had previously held that geography was a dry field with scarce employment opportunities but after the excursion on the webpage, I am left completely convinced otherwise. I also discovered the nobleness that can come from learning and applying geography, especially those geared towards making the world a better place to live in (such as in combating global warming, climate change, environmental degradation and pollution, soil erosion and so on). Works Cited Association of American Geographers. "Home | AAG." Home | AAG. AAG, n.d. Web. 7 July 2014. . electronic Read More