Editorial

Succession is a concern that becomes increasingly important to a journal editor as s/he draws closer to the end of the term of office. It certainly has become more and more important to me as I move through the final year of my term as Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Journal on Aging. Perhaps because of the amount of time and effort invested over a 4-year period, the "health" of the journal becomes quite a personal matter. Knowing that my successor will be someone under whom the journal will flourish is important, not only to the Canadian Association on Gerontology and its membership, but to me, personally. It is with great pleasure, therefore, that I greet the appointment of Dr. Mark Rosenberg, Professor of Geography, Queen's University, as the incoming editor-in-chief. Dr. Rosenberg has been appointed by the Board of the Canadian Association on Gerontology and will serve a 4-year term from November 1, 2004, to October 31, 2008. Dr. Rosenberg brings substantial editorial and scholarly experience to this post. He has served as an editorial board member for six journals, including Canadian Public Policy and Health and Place; as a book review editor; as the North American editor for Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy; and as an editor for a newsletter and a set of proceedings in geography. An active scholar, he is the author or co-author of one book, over 50 refereed articles, 15 articles in proceedings, 13 book chapters, and 38 scientific reports. He has been a member of CAG since 1989 and served on the board of the association, as Social Sciences Division Chair-elect and Chair from 1997 to 2001, and as Vice-President from 2001 to 2004. Authors should continue to submit manuscripts to me until October 31, 2004, after which time submissions should go to Dr. Mark Rosenberg, Queen's University, Department of Geography, Kingston, Ontario, K7L 3N6.

This issue of the journal is devoted to the theme, "Cross-national Comparisons of Social Isolation and Loneliness." The issue grew out of a symposium organized by Betty Havens for the 17th World Congress of the International Association on Gerontology in Vancouver in 2001. The papers were processed as regular submissions, with the review process overseen by the journal's Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences Section Editors. It is a pleasure to see the issue in print and to have articles that are truly international in scope. I would be delighted to receive more symposium submissions in the future and to publish them either as thematic issues or as special sections within an issue. Betty Havens' enthusiasm and persistence were key in bringing this issue to completion, and I extend my appreciation to her on behalf of the journal and its readers.