Report of the Seventy-Eighth Annual Meeting: Palm Springs, California October 21–24, 2015

Abstract

Report of the Seventy-Eighth Annual MeetingPalm Springs, California October 21–24, 2015 Respectfully submitted, James Craine California State University, Northridge The 78th annual meeting of the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers was held at the Palm Springs Hyatt hotel In Palm Springs, California, from October 21 to October 24, 2015. Paper sessions were held in the hotel on Friday and Saturday. The Opening Night Reception was held Wednesday evening on the hotel’s Sun Deck, highlighted by the wonderful view of the mountains and the setting sun and capped off by Tim Krantz’s enlightening talk, “A Geographer’s-Eye View of the Salton Sea.” On Friday, Chris Lukinbeal gave his Presidential Address and hosted the President’s Reception and Poster Session in the Grand Ballroom in the hotel foyer; the plated Awards Banquet was held in the hotel Atrium and was highlighted by the presentation of the student awards and Bill Bowen’s moving remembrance of his wife, Marilyn. More than two hundred people, from most of the states in the APCG region, attended the meeting. In a bit of geographical synchronicity, the Executive Council of the Association of American Geographers was holding its annual meeting that same week, and President Sara Bednarz was able to attend the banquet and speak to the audience. Field trips put together by Tina White and Steve Graves were held Thursday, October 22. Excursions included guided trips to the Salton Sea and a tour of Palm Springs modernist architecture. Dr. Graves took a full complement of attendees to Salvation Mountain and the bustling community of East Jesus. There was a tram ride up Mt. San Jacinto and a hike to the San Andreas Fault. Friday and Saturday, October 23–24, featured eighteen paper sessions with ninety presentations and panels and the awards banquet on Saturday evening. The annual Distinguished Service Awards were presented to Vicki Drake and Dolly Freidel. Special thanks go out to Elena Givental and the Awards Committee. The weather cooperated and the hotel staff was very helpful in making the conference a success. [End Page 288] Special thanks also go to Steve Graves, Soheil Bourashaki, Aleksandra Craine, Tina White, Dave Deis, and Karen Sonksen. Many CSUN students volunteered, including Matt Nordstrom, Sean Robison, Jamie Hoffman, and Kiyumi Brocious. [End Page 289] Copyright © 2016 Association of Pacific Coast Geographers