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Staff at the CIESIN-Earth Institute exhibit booth of the 2012 Association of American Geographers explain research activities and programs to conference attendees. Pictured left to right: Allison Ladue, assistant director, Columbia University's Master of Science in Sustainability Management, and Allison Lacko, research staff assistant, CIESIN. |
The Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) had a strong presence at the 2012 Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers, which drew more than 8,500 participants to New York City February 24–28. CIESIN co-sponsored two booths, one staffed in collaboration with the Earth Institute, and the other showcasing CIESIN’s Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC) together with the Land Processes Data Active Archive Center (LP DAAC), two of NASA’s Earth science data centers. On February 26, senior research associate Alex de Sherbinin was chair and organizer of a panel session, Geospatial and Statistical Data from International Institutions, which included presentations by several different United Nations and World Bank representatives with whom CIESIN collaborates. Senior staff associate Sandra Baptista also organized a session, Frontiers in Spatial Demography and Population Geography, held on February 28 and chaired by Michael Goodchild of the University of California at Santa Barbara. CIESIN staff members participated in several panel and paper sessions: geographic information specialist Malanding Jaiteh was a panelist for Science in Support of Sustainable Development and Human Rights in East Africa, chaired by State Department geographer Lee Schwartz; associate director Mark Becker was a panelist in two sessions, Geospatial Technologies for International Development and Internships and Work-Based Learning as Career Preparation; Earth Institute Fellow Alexandra Morel presented an interactive short paper, “Spatial Analysis of Socio-Economic and Natural Hazard Vulnerability for Haiti, Using GIS and Remote Sensing,” co-authored with senior staff associate Liana Razafindrazay; geographic information specialist Sneha Rao presented the paper, “Exploring Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health in Classrooms Using CHANGE Viewer,” co-authored with senior systems analyst programmer James Carcone, Mark Becker, and Cayuga Community College colleague Amy Work; Alex de Sherbinin presented a paper, “Estimating Global Net Migration by Ecosystem and By Decade: 1970-2010,” co-authored with deputy director Marc Levy, associate research scientist Susana Adamo, geographic information specialist Kytt MacManus, senior research associate Valentina Mara, and Liana Razafindrazay; and he also presented the paper “Environmental Indicators: An Application of Satellite Data Products to Support High Level Decisions for National and International Environmental Protection” co-authored with Marc Levy and Battelle Memorial Institute colleagues Erica Zell and Stephanie Weber. CIESIN welcomed AAG participants at a reception held February 27 and hosted twelve AAG participants on a field trip to the Lamont campus on February 28. CIESIN director Robert Chen’s role as one of three co-chairs of the Local Arrangements Committee was recognized at the AAG opening session on February 24.