AAG 2023 Call For Papers

Symposium on Geospatial Approaches to Pressing Grand Challenges: Global Pandemics, Climate Change, and Food Security

AAG Annual Meeting, Denver, March 23-27, 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated control measures have enormous social, economic, and health impacts on human society. While non-pharmaceutical control measures (e.g., travel restrictions and physical distancing) and active strategies (e.g., widespread testing and contact tracing) have mitigated the spread of COVID-19 to some extent, they have also had many limitations. Meanwhile, climate change can also have significant harmful impacts on human health through various pathways (e.g., heatwaves, sea level rises, wildfires, and climate-sensitive infectious diseases). Pandemics and a changing climate have thus emerged as the greatest health risks for humankind in the 21st century. Geospatial perspectives, technologies, and analysis have great potential to increase our capacities in managing the social, economic, and health impacts of future pandemics and public health crises linked to climate change. They can also support the development of effective strategies for enhancing pandemic readiness at a time of climate crisis.

We welcome participation from geographers, GIScientists, health researchers, other scientists, and stakeholders at the 2023 AAG Annual Meeting to address the challenges of global pandemics, climate change, and food security. Papers on all aspects of health research related to infectious diseases, pandemics, pandemic readiness, climate change, food security, environmental health, and public health crises are welcome. Topics may include but are not limited to:

• Environmental, cultural, and behavioral drivers of pandemics
• Vulnerable populations and inequalities in exposure to health risks related to climate change and food security
• Environmental, socioeconomic, and health impacts of infectious disease and climate change
• Pandemic control, human mobility, and social interactions
• Pandemic mitigation strategies
• Building and creating pandemic-ready cities
• Impacts of pandemics and pandemic control on social inequalities
• Spatial optimization of health resource distribution (e.g., vaccination)
• Pandemic control measures and geoprivacy concerns
• Public health impacts of climate change and food insecurity
• Meeting the challenge of achieving carbon neutrality in the health sector
• Adaptations to the public health risk from climate change
• Exposure and vulnerability related to heatwaves, rising temperature, and extreme weather events (e.g., cyclones)
• Exposure and vulnerability related to air pollution and climate-sensitive infectious diseases
• Public health impacts related to food security under climate change
• Carbon mitigation policies and other mitigation or adaptation measures
• Establishing climate-resilient policies and infrastructure (e.g., healthy cities)

To participate in the Symposium's sessions, please register and submit your abstract at https://www.aag.org/events/aag2023/. When you receive confirmation of a successful abstract submission, please then forward this confirmation to Mei-Po Kwan at mpk654@gmail.com. The abstract deadline is October 25, 2022.

For more information, please visit https://www.aag.org/events/aag2023/ or contact members of the Symposium's organizing committee. The Symposium's organizing committee members are: