The 70th Annual Association of Pacific Coast Geographers (APCG) conference was hosted by Cal State Long Beach’s Department of Geography at the downtown Long Beach Hilton from Oct. 17 through Oct. 20.
Established in 1935, the APCG gathers many graduate students and faculty from other universities and junior colleges to promote education, research, knowledge and socialization. This has been the first time in 25 years that Long Beach has hosted the APCG conference.
According to geography department Chairman and this year’s conference organizer Vincent J. Del Casino Jr., “The conference’s sole purpose was to showcase the CSU’s many departments of geography, open up geographical conversation about social, environmental and political issues, and to promote the wonderful city of Long Beach.”
The conference’s function proved to be a success, as Thomas Baerwald from the National Science Foundation and President of the National Association of American Geographers said, “Long Beach is a fantastic and fascinating place, but what’s most especially exciting is being in the company of the Department of Geography at CSULB.”
Many of the geographers and faculty members donned white APCG nametags as they discussed serious geographical topics about trying to find a solution for the current drought plaguing most of the Southwest as well.
“Geography is a crucial for society in educating councils to make better decisions, especially with this drought that’s happening,” said Patricia Gober, a geographer from Arizona State University.
Using Gober’s statement as an example, Casino added that, “Regional conferences are great because they’re intimate. They’re small so people can get to have conversations about their research and their teachings. That’s really important.”
Students also got the chance to visually present their own geographical concerns to conference members by oration and create geographical awareness posters. Students presented on a range of topics, such as “Habitat Characteristics of Barn Owl Capture and Recapture Sites in Southern California” and “Sweet Teas are the Elixir of the South.”
Students who paid to go on field trips got to explore and discuss key geographical topics regarding the Southern California area. Students also went to the Port of Long Beach to discuss the environmental impacts, mitigation efforts and security concerns it has in Los Angeles County.
Another field trip involved students visiting the various ethnic neighborhoods of Los Angeles and Orange counties. Students stopped at Plaza Mexico in Lynwood, Westminster’s Little Saigon, Artesia’s Little India and the Cambodian neighborhood in Long Beach.
“Geography is spatial organization of society and how we organize the environment around us, socially and culturally,” Casino said. “It’s trying to be integration between humans and their environment.”
