Journal of Latin American Geography

Organizations such as CLAG exist because a few individuals shoulder the responsibility to maintain them. Tonight we recognize the work of one of CLAG's pillars, David James Robinson, with an Outstanding Service Award. Dr. Robinson is an enthusiastic and early adopter of technology. He singlehandedly brought CLAG into the electronic age by designing CLAG's website in 1994 and managing it for eight years. That same year he also created and still manages CLAGnet—our invaluable listserv—that provides CLAG members instant access to our group's collective knowledge. We've all had the experience of posting a question about data, references, or field courses, and within minutes a Clagger eagerly responds. In addition to his cyberspace contributions, David edited three CLAG Yearbooks (1994, 1995 and 1997) and served as the president of the organization from 1998-2000.

Eleven years ago CLAG awarded the Preston E. James Eminent Latin Americanist Career Award to Professor Robinson in recognition for his outstanding scholarly achievements. His vast contributions to historical geography and demography, especially in the colonial period, are widely recognized by Latin Americanist scholars. With this award we salute David's long-standing institutional contributions to CLAG and his efforts to foster linkages with academic geographers throughout the Americas and Europe.

Professor Robinson joined the Department of Geography at Syracuse University in 1973, leaving behind University College London where he earned his PhD in 1967 and lectured in Latin American geography for several years. For the past two decades he has been the Dellplain Professor of Latin American Geography at Syracuse. Born in Biddulph, England, his geographic imagination was sparked in grade school where he took glee in knowing more geography than his instructors. His unbounded enthusiasm and energy are legendary; no one spends more hours in the office or the field than DJR.

In addition to his formal service to CLAG, he has contributed to the institutional vigor of Latin American geography through mentoring students, editing series and accumulating extensive experience in the field. As of 2002 Robinson has directed 22 PhD dissertations and 20 Masters thesis. Through his guidance, most of these research projects involved original archival and field work in Latin America. And many of these students, myself included, presented our first research papers at CLAG meetings and published our findings in CLAG publications.

David Robinson is a superb editor, and he used his considerable talents to advance the Dellplain Latin American [End Page 131] Studies Series. The brainchild of Robinson, he edited over 30 monographs before ending the series in 1996. The Dellplain series provided a showcase for works in historical geography and demography. Many CLAG members, in addition to other scholars, published in this series such as William Denevan, Gregory Knapp, Oliver Coomes, Thomas Whitmore, Robert West, B. L. Turner, II and Michael Swann.

Finally, David is a living bridge across the Americas. Nearly every year since 1963 he has spent some time working in Latin America, ranging from a couple months to entire years. Over forty years, his research sites have spanned the region from the Rio Bravo to Tierra del Fuego. Through his research and teaching he knows a vast network of scholars interested in Latin America's complex human geography. He is a sought after lecturer throughout the Americas and delivers talks in rapid-fire Spanish or English.

In sum, he navigates a transnational social space and in so doing challenges each of us to avoid provincialism, engage other scholarly communities, adopt new technologies, and make CLAG a dynamic arena for the exchange of ideas.

For this, and so much more, we thank you.