Report of the Seventy-Seventh Annual Meeting: Tucson, Arizona, September 24–27, 2014

The 77th annual meeting of the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers was held on the campus of The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, from September 24 to 27, 2014. Paper sessions were held in the Tucson Marriott University Park Hotel, a block away from the University of Arizona’s Main Gate and just north of the new streetcar line that leads from campus to downtown Tucson. The Opening Night Reception was held in the Hall of Champions; the President’s Reception and Mexican Fiesta Dinner and Night at the Museum took place in the Arizona Historical Society’s Museum; and the Awards Banquet was in The University of Arizona’s Student Memorial Center. Though the Autumnal Equinox occurred a day before the conference, visitors were bathed in 98°F heat upon arrival.

One hundred ninety-five people registered for the meeting. Attendees came from most of the states in the APCG region and included substantial contingents from The University of Arizona; Arizona State University; Portland State University; the University of Nevada, Reno; San Diego State University; Idaho State University; and several of the institutions in the California State system. Geographers from outside the region attended as well, coming from as far away as Korea and Germany. The Association of American Geographers’ President Mona Domosh (Dartmouth University) was also in attendance.

The meeting opened with a reception held at The University of Arizona’s Hall of Champions, an Athletics museum attached to McKale Memorial Center (basketball arena), which highlights the University’s heritage and traditions. Attendees were welcomed by APCG Vice President Chris Lukinbeal and The University of Arizona administrators Vincent Del Casino (professor of geography and vice provost for Digital Learning & Student Engagement, and associate vice president for Student Affairs & Enrollment Management); John Paul Jones III (professor of geography and dean, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences); and Connie Woodhouse (professor of geography and interim director of the School of Geography and Development). Afterward, a presentation by Joseph Wilder, director of the Southwest Center, titled, “Promises of Aching Beauty,” highlighted the architectural uniqueness of the Sonoran region.

Thursday, September 25, featured eight field trips, including: Biosphere 2, Sky Islands, Water Tales, Architectural Tour of Tucson, Tucson’s El Presidio Historic District, Chicano Murals, Tohono O’odham Nation, and The University of Arizona’s Tree Ring and Mirror labs. On Thursday night, “A Night at the Museum” and Mexican Fiesta was held at the Arizona Historical Society, where attendees had full access to the museum. During this event, Steve Yool, professor of geography, entertained the crowd with, “The Wide World of Music Challenge.” In this game, members of the audience competed against one another to be the first person to correctly guess the country of origin of a song played by Dr. Yool on the accordion.

Friday and Saturday, September 26-27, featured nineteen paper sessions, two panel sessions, and one poster session held in conjunction with the president’s reception, for a total of eighty-nine papers and eleven posters. APCG President Sriram Khe’s plenary session, “Quo Vadis,” took place Friday afternoon and focused on envisioning the future of the APCG. Following the plenary, attendees were invited to the Arizona Historical Society’s Museum for the catered President’s Reception and President’s Poster Session. More than 150 people came to the event, after which participants were encouraged to enjoy the evening in Tucson.

With sessions beginning at 9:30 on the morning of Saturday, September 27, attendees were well rested and relaxed for an exciting day of scholarly engagement. Along with regular paper sessions, two special events were presented on Saturday. The first was a plenary hosted by Katie Meehan, Deborah Thien, and the APCG Women’s Network, titled, “Screaming Queens: LGBT Studies and The Future of Feminist Geography: A Conversation with Susan Stryker.” Here, attendees viewed Stryker’s recent film, Screaming Queens, before discussants queried the filmmaker on questions of transgender and queer studies raised by the film, as well as the role these issues play in geographic thought. The second, “Author Meets Critics...