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Dear colleagues, for two years now the Indigenous Geography Specialty Group of the AAG has put together some enormously worthwhile sessions that have been largely overlooked by the rest of the discipline. Nonetheless, the work in this area sits at a critical juncture of colonization, ethnicity, "race"/representation, and power/hegemony issues that are addressed by members of this list, and has provided a forum for indigenous voices to be heard. Whether or not your work is applicable to this call for papers, we invite you to consider the work that is being done in this area, and to consider attending some of these sessions. See the website, listed below, to view last year's papers. Doug ________________________ INDIGENOUS GEOGRAPHIES – Call for Papers Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting March 4-8, 2003, 2003 New Orleans, LA In the past two years, the Indigenous Peoples Specialty Group (IPSG) of the Association of American Geographers has organized series of paper and discussion sessions on Indigenous Geography for the AAG Annual Meeting. Following on the success of these sessions and building on developments in the field, the IPSG is laying the groundwork for another series of Indigenous Geography sessions for the 2003 meeting. This is an invitation to geographers and others who are indigenous people or who are studying the geographies of indigenous peoples, in any region of the world, to come together to discuss and share issues in the two main areas of IPSG work: Indigenous Geographies as ways of knowing, and Issues affecting Indigenous Peoples. (1) Indigenous Geographies : This includes presentations that manifest or celebrate the distinctive perspectives, concerns, and worldviews of particular indigenous peoples around the world. The standardization and dissemination of modern-western geographical concepts and worldviews over the past few hundred years has overshadowed indigenous ways of knowing that developed over millennia. Those of us who are engaged with indigenous communities, as scholars and/or as members of those communities, recognize the unique value of indigenous peoples’ systems of language and belief, which contain abundant information about both peoples and their environments, and are essential to indigenous self-identity. (2) Issues affecting Indigenous Peoples Many of us are engaged with work on geographic issues affecting indigenous peoples in the social, political, demographic and historical spheres, to name a few. Others are working with indigenous peoples to develop new programs using geo-techniques, resource management practices, cartography, and other such tools. These issues speak directly to the empowerment of indigenous peoples. Across both categories, potential topics include but are not limited to -- land and resource disputes based on conflicting geographic and cultural systems; -- educational issues and resources for teaching about indigenous cultures and worldviews; --the interface of GIS and contemporary geo-information techniques with indigenous land and environmental management, including the claiming of sacred spaces by indigenous peoples; -- the representation of indigenous peoples and/or “whiteness” in various media; -- cartography and participatory mapping in indigenous communities; -- diasporas of indigenous peoples; -- territory, governance and nationhood; -- or simply presentations on the geographic dimensions of specific indigenous worldviews. This list is suggestions only--any proposals will be considered. The line-up for last year’s panels, including most abstracts, can be viewed at http://www.towson.edu/users/dherman/aag/indigeog.htm Interested persons, including session organizers and discussants, should contact RDK Herman of Towson University / Pacific Worlds: [log in to unmask] Abstracts and materials must be received in time to submit before the September 30, 2002 deadline. RDK Herman "Pacific Worlds" Geography & Env. Planning Towson University 8000 York Road Towson, Maryland 21252-0001 t. 410-704-3793 f. 410-704-4702