NEW FOCUS ON GEOGRAPHY EDITOR SOUGHT

The American Geographical Society seeks applications and nominations for Editor of FOCUS on Geography. The new Editor is appointed for a three-year editorial term that will commence on January 1, 2010, with Volume 53. FOCUS on Geography is a forty-page, full-color quarterly journal with articles written by well-known academic and professional geographers; in-depth theme sections; maps and photos; and special country issues. Written and edited by geographers, FOCUS for decades has provided geographical analysis and perspective in a relaxed and readable style for a wide audience that includes P-12 teachers, the business community, professional geographers, and the general public.

The FOCUS Editor will solicit, review, and accept for publication articles, photo essays, and other items appropriate for publication in the journal. The AGS expects that the new Editor will accept manuscripts from across the breadth and depth of international activity in contemporary geography.

In support of these goals, the FOCUS Editor should possess a strong record of scholarly achievement, a broad perspective on the discipline of geography, respect and affection for its diversity, and an ability to work constructively with authors during the review process. Institutional support for the new Editor (especially some time released from teaching) is desirable, but not mandatory, as is prior experience editing a journal or other quarterly publication. The AGS will provide a modest stipend to be used at the Editor's discretion.

A letter of application that addresses both qualifications and a vision for FOCUS on Geography should be accompanied by a complete curriculum vitae. Nominations and/or applications should be submitted no later than November 15, 2009. Send applications or letters of nomination to:
The Executive Director, The American Geographical Society, 120 Wall Street, Suite 100, New York, NY 10005-3904.
Nominations and applications may also be submitted electronically to ags@amergeog.org.

In celebration of the AGS sesquicentennial, our fifty-year old mirror for geography has a new name: FOCUS on Geography. In 1950 FOCUS was a four-page, two-color leaflet on a single subject, published ten times a year. Today, FOCUS on Geography is a forty-page, full-color quarterly journal with numerous articles written by well-known academic and professional geographers; in-depth theme sections; maps and photos; and special country issues. Written and edited by geographers, FOCUS for decades has provided geographical information and perspectives in a relaxed and readable style for a wide audience:

FOCUS on Geography Current Issue (Fall 2009)

FOCUS on Geography View the Fall 2009 FOCUS issue contents.

FOCUS on Geography SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:
Click here for the Guidelines page.

Editor contact information:

Editor: Dr. Gregory H. Chu
email: Chu.greg@uwlax.edu
Department of Geography and Earth Science
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
La Crosse, WI 54601

Assistant Editor: Dr. James E. Young
email: Youngje@appstate.edu
Department of Geography and Planning
Appalachian State University
Boone, NC 28608

Assistant Editor: Catherine M. Lockwood
Email: clockwood@csc1.csc.edu
Chadron State College
Chadron, Nebraska, 69337

Editorial Board:
Robert S. Bednarz, Texas A&M University
Cynthia J. Berlin, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
John Fraser Hart, University of Minnesota
Neal G. Lineback, Appalachian State University
Robert W. McColl, University of Kansas
Kendra McSweeney, Ohio State University
Dean G. Wilder, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
Everett A. Wingert, University of Hawaii
Wendy Wolford, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
James E. Young, Appalachian State University

AGS office, Advertising, and Teacher Liaison -- James Thomas
Email: JWThomas@amergeog.org

ORDERING INFORMATION: FOCUS on Geography subscriptions; Special Theme issues; Country issues; Back issues & articles; Geographical Alliance orders: At present this website does not offer online purchases.
To order, please contact:
The American Geographical Society
120 Wall Street, Suite 100
New York: NY 10005-3904
Phone: (212) 422-5456; Fax (212) 422-5480.
Email: AGS@amergeog.org

For grade school teachers - FOCUS on Geography offers readings and facts as background for lesson-plan development on such timely and timeless topics as: "Markets, Bazaars and Suqs" by Stewart McHenry (43/2); "The Pacific Islands: A New Geography" by Robert J. Sager (38/2); "China's Silk Roads: A Modern Journey to China's Western Regions" by R.W. McColl (41/2); "The Otogar is the Way to Go: By Bus Through Turkey" by Donald F. Lynch (44/4) - and many more, available through a search of the FOCUS Index -- see below. Also see below for information on Teacher Liaison and Geographical Alliance orders.

For junior-high and high-school teachers and students - FOCUS on Geography offers issues devoted to one country and special "in-depth" sections that can be used by teachers and students. For example: "Living With and Teaching About the Glaciated Landscape" (46/1); "Living With and Teaching About Karst" (45/2); "Brazil" by Brian J. Godfrey (45/4); "Scotland" by Alistair Cruickshank and Richard V. Smith (46/2); "Greece" forthcoming, by Stewart McHenry (46/4). Other Special Theme Sections are listed below. Also see below for information on Teacher Liaison and Geographical Alliance orders.

For university and community-college students, researchers, and teachers - FOCUS on Geography articles provide fifty years of perspectives and data from prominent geographers on the issues and places that shape our Earth. Recent examples include "Impressions of a New South Africa" by Alan Lester (45/2); "Indian Gaming in the United States: Distribution, Significance, and Trends" by Dick G. Winchell, John F. Lounsbury and Lawrence M. Sommers (44/4); "The Great Flood of '93" in three parts, by David H. Hickcox (v.43); "Sun, Fun and a Rum Deal: Perspectives on Development in the Caribbean" by Robert B. Potter and Sally Lloyd-Evans (44/4); "Women Travellers at Fins de Siecles" by Briavel Holcomb (43/4); and many more.

FOCUS THROUGH THE DECADES

With its inception in 1950, and into the 1960s, FOCUS editor Alice Taylor engaged prominent geographers to summarize their understanding of a country's complexities, or of an important geopolitical issue of that era, into a newsletter format. These fact-packed, insightful overviews were edited for a wide, general audience. During the 1960s, the eight-page format proved flexible enough to allow each issue to contain two or three short, sharp reports or commentaries, accompanied by superb maps. The complexity of the geographer's understanding began to shine through during the 1970s, an era which featured whole-issue articles on the problems and processes facing a rapidly changing world. By the mid-1980s, FOCUS had become a full-color magazine with numerous articles and departments, written and edited by professional geographers intent on communicating geographical perspectives to the general reader. Today's FOCUS on Geography alternates general issues containing numerous articles on a variety of topics with theme issues devoted to a special topic and issues devoted to a single country. Sample issue contents are provided below for each era. The full listing of the FOCUS archive is available in the FOCUS Index, discussed below. FOCUS compilations are planned, based on countries, themes, authors and issues.

FOCUS in the 1950s:"Resources of the Tropics: I - Africa" by George Kimble (Volume III, No. 4, December, 1952).

FOCUS in the 1960s:"U.S.S.R. Resources for Heavy Industry" by Chauncy D. Harris; "Changing Resource Policies of the U.S.S.R." and "Akademgorodok" by Theodore Shabad (Volume XIX, No. 6, February 1969).

FOCUS in the 1970s:"Population Pressures in Bangladesh" by Ashok K. Dutt and Nawajesh Ahmed; "Development Through Restraints on Material Growth" by Emile Benoit (Volume XXV Nos. 3 and 4, November - December 1974).

FOCUS from the mid-1980s to 2001: Special Theme Issues (several articles on one topic): "The Gulf War" - articles by Rubenstein; Chatfield and O'Connell; Cohen; Cutter (Volume 41, No.2) "China" - articles by Andrus; Chu; Toops; Hussey; Hsu; Jowett; Eichen and Ming; Ryan; Veeck; McColl and Guangbo; de Blij (Volume 42, No. 1) "Hurricanes" - articles by Lee and Roberts; Hickcox; Harden and Pulsipher (Volume 42, No. 2) "The Buffalo Commons Debate" - articles by Roebuck; DeBres, Kromm and White; Wallach; Popper and Popper (Volume 43, No. 4) "Hong Kong" - articles by Chu, Ginsburg (reprinted from 1953), Cartier, Boorstein, Ghosheh; Websites and readings (Volume 44, No.3) "Living With and Teaching About Karst" - articles by Lineback; Kerski; LaMoreaux and LaMoreaux; Organizations to contact for teaching and field trips (Volume 45, No.2) "Living With and Teaching About the Glaciated Landscape" articles by Miller; Hayes-Bohanan; Kerski; Lineback; References, guidebooks, websites, and lesson plans (Volume 46, No. 1).

Country Issues (an occasional series in which the entire issue is devoted to a single country): "Brazil" - Brian Godfrey, 2000; "Scotland" - Alistair Cruickshank and Richard V. Smith (Vol. 46(2), Winter 2001); "Greece" - Stewart McHenry, (Vol. 47(3) Spring 2003). Please see the "Publications" listing on this site for information about six additional countries written to the same content outline and published in small-book format during the mid-1990s.

FOCUS-RELATED PUBLICATIONS AND PROGRAMS

The FOCUS Index: The FOCUS Index was compiled, and is regularly updated, by AGS staffer James Thomas. It includes an introduction and preface by James Thomas and Hilary Lambert Hopper. This publication lists FOCUS articles chronologically and by title, author, and department. Geographic themes include population, economic, tourism, resources, environmental, cultural, country, regional, physical, teaching, place. There are numerous articles by Harm de Blij on wines ("A Votre Sante"); and by Bret Wallach ("Geographer's Journal"). In addition to feature articles and special themes, departments include "Words in FOCUS," "The Seventh Sense," "Weatherwise," "Geography in the News," "The Urban Naturalist," "Destination," "Geographer's Bookshelf," and "Geography and Teaching."

FOCUS Index ordering information -- see below.

The McColl Family Fellowship: Inaugurated during 1999, the McColl Family Fellowship provides a stipend annually for travel to a field area for geographic research. The winners must submit a FOCUS article about their research experience and results. The 2000 recipient was Dr. Joseph J. Hobbs. His article "People and Caves in Madagascar" appears in FOCUS on Geography Volume 46(4), published in mid-2001. The 2001 recipient is Dr. Kendra McSweeny, who will use her award for travel to Honduras to assess the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch. For more information about this program, contact the American Geographical Society office in New York City at the address listed at the bottom of this page.