Some subscribers to crit-geog-forum may already have seen this on the 
leftgeog list.

It seems that the AAG and radical geographers in the US/Canada are
thinking along some of the same lines as the recent discussions on
crit-geog-forum.  Anyone who is going to the AAG meeting this year
(I'm not, especially since Andy Herod told me that there is nowhere
to eat in Charlotte) might like to get in touch with the committee 
mentioned below and report back to the cgf.

Cheers

Joe


------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
Date:          Tue, 19 Mar 1996 08:40:56 -0600
Reply-to:      Socialist/Radical Geography <[log in to unmask]>
From:          "William S. Lynn" <[log in to unmask]>
Subject:       AAG Code of Ethics
To:            Multiple recipients of list LEFTGEOG <[log in to unmask]>

Hello Geographers!

For over a decade the Association of American Geographers has flirted with the
idea of a code and/or curriculum of ethics (Kates 1994; Lynn 1994; Mitchell and
Draper 1982). The reasons for doing so are obvious. Ethical concerns are a
prerequisite of social science research (Kimmel 1988; Sieber 1992), the academic
community is increasingly concerned with the conduct of research and the
education of scholars in questions of ethics (National Academy of Sciences 1995;
National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of
Medicine 1992), ethics is a growth pole in the academy (Gustafson 1991), and
geographers are increasingly engaged in the moral dimensions of their research
(see the discussion of geography and ethics in Lynn 1996).

During the 1996 Annual Meeting of the AAG in Charlotte, NC (AAG'96), the AAG's
Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Committee [SFRC] will meet. The committee
members include Alec Murphy (chair), myself (Bill Lynn), L. Chatterjee, V.
Domingo, J. Kodras, C. Kovacik, and L. Staeheli. Our agenda includes discussing
the advisability and character of a code and/or curriculum of ethics. Your
comments and suggestions would be greatly appreciated by the committee.

So I pose the question--"Should geographers adopt a code and/or curriculum of
ethics, and if so, what should it look like?"

Elements for discussion might include:
% the intent of such a code (e.g., rules of thumb or strict regulations),
% what the relative balance should be regarding education versus enforcement,
% how ethics be should taught in the undergraduate and graduate curriculums,
% how to examine egregious violations (e.g., hearings, sanctions, warnings,
mediations, advising),
% what the code might cover (e.g., professional conduct, research integrity, the
environmental and social relevance of scholarship, conflicts between our roles
as researchers, teachers, consultants, entrepreneurs, consultant, and advocates,
etc.),
% how ethics should be incorporated into academic and applied theory and method,
and
% how we should proceed (another committee or "just do it").

We look forward to your comments! If you are on the Geo-Ethics email discussion
list, you may reply to the list. If you are not on Geo-Ethics, please reply
directly to me, and I will forward your comments to the committee. Thank you.

Bill Lynn  }`-

References

Gustafson, J. M. 1991. Ethics: An American Growth Industry. Key Reporter56:1-5.

Kates, R. 1994. President's Column [Editorial on Ethics]. AAG Newsletter29:1-2.

Kimmel, A. J. 1988. Ethics and Values in Applied Social Research. Newbury Park,
California: Sage.

Lynn, W. S. 1994. An Open Letter on Geography and Ethics. AAG Newsletter29:3 et
seq.

Lynn, W. S. 1996. Animals, Ethics and Geography. In Animal Geographies , Emel,
J. and Wolch, J. ed., London: Verso. Forthcoming.

Mitchell, B., and Draper, D. 1982. Relevance and Ethics in Geography. New York:
Longman.

National Academy of Sciences. 1995. On Being a Scientist: Responsible Conduct in
Research (Second ed.). Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of
Medicine. 1992. Responsible Science: Ensuring the Integrity of the Research
Process/Panel on Scientific Responsibility and the Conduct of Research,
Committee on Science, Engineering and Public Policy. Washington, DC: National
Academy Press.

Sieber, J. E. 1992. Planning Ethically Responsible Research: A Guide for
Students and Internal Review Boards. Newbury Park, California: Sage.


~~~
William S. Lynn
Department of Geography
University of Minnesota
414 Social Science
Minneapolis, MN  55455
612/625-6080
612/624-1044 (fax)
[log in to unmask]


%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%