Academic news and updates

Professor Mike Hulme, founding Editor in Chief for the journal WIREs Climate Change, has announced his decision to step down from this role at the end of this year.

The Society met with geographical societies from across the world ahead of COP15 – the next major meeting of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.

An exciting new project aiming to increase the diversity of students choosing geography at A Level and beyond.

Discover our award-winning interactive teaching and learning resources on the Weddell Sea.

This June, the Society is marking a month of CPD-related activity for professional geographers.

To mark Volunteers’ Week, Professor Joe Smith, the Society’s Director, has written an open letter of thanks to all the volunteers who contribute to our regional committees.

Our award-winning teaching and learning resources bring the latest geographical research into schools.

Each year, the Society recognises excellent dissertations undertaken by geographers across the UK.

Catch up with the recent activities of the Society's Research Groups

Professor James D Sidaway, recipient of the 2022 Busk Award, talks about his work.

Registration for our annual conference is open for both in-person and virtual-only attendance.

We caught up with Wiley Research Fellow María Sebastián Sebastián from the University of the Balearic Islands to discuss her research

Our schools resources have been highly commended by the Geographical Association and nominated for recognition at the Education Resources Awards.

The deadline for this year’s Earth Photo competition is fast approaching, with under three weeks left to submit your entries

The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education has published a new edition of the Subject Benchmark Statement for Geography – the document which defines the standards expected of geography graduates in the UK.

We are delighted to announce the chair's plenary speakers for this year's Annual Conference in Newcastle.

The newest addition to the RGS-IBG book series, Defensible Space on the Move: Mobilisation in English Housing Policy and Practice, is now available to order online.

The Society and the Financial Times are pleased to announce the launch of our joint School Essay Competition for 2022.

The Society is pleased to be taking part in National Lottery Open Week, an annual celebration of the contribution National Lottery players make every week in support of good cause projects, just like ours.

The Society commissioned a survey to discover more about the views of young people on their choices of subjects to study at school and university, and what influences their career choices.

The Society is delighted to be working with geographers leading UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) funded projects, to further our understanding of human influence on river basin functioning.

The Society is delighted to announce the appointment of a new Editorial Board for our academic journal Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers.

The Society is delighted to be working with geographers leading AHRC and NERC funded projects, to further our understanding of unexplored areas of history that relate to environmental sciences.

The International Geographical Union, of which the Society is a full member, has released a statement condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

With the time for choosing A Level options approaching, there has never been a better time to encourage your students to choose A Level geography.

The Society, in partnership with Endurance22, have produced a set of educational resources which allow pupils to explore changes in polar exploration from the early 20th century to today, and Antarctica’s unique frozen environment.

As part of the Society’s commitment to support teachers to provide meaningful, fun and curriculum relevant fieldwork experiences, we are running a range of training events over the coming months for both primary and secondary geography teachers.

The Society’s Fieldwork Apprenticeships offer grants of £1,500 to enable students who would not otherwise have the opportunity to participate in an overseas fieldwork project led by an academic member of staff at their university.

This spring we are bringing in the changes to how some of our membership categories are named or structured that were agreed at the Special General Meeting in September 2021.

A recent paper published in the Society’s journal Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers highlights the underrepresentation of Black PhD students and scholars in UK higher education.

Application deadlines for many of the Society’s grants supporting fieldwork and research by undergraduate, masters and PhD students; teachers and schools; and early career and established researchers are fast approaching.

We are inviting nominations from Fellows for a number of Council positions to be elected in June 2022.

The Society is closed completely between Friday 24 December 2021 and Monday 3 January 2022, inclusive.

The Ron Cooke Award recognises A Level students’ work towards the independent investigation, also known as the NEA.

The Society recently co-hosted the Geography in Government Conference 2021, providing a platform for geographers across the public sector to share their expertise and experience.

The winners of the 2021 Young Geographer of the Year competition have been announced.

Yesterday evening the recipients of our 2020 and 2021 medals and awards gathered at the Society for a celebration of their outstanding contributions to geographical research, fieldwork, teaching, policy, and public engagement.

The Society and the Financial Times are delighted to announce the winning and highly commended entries to their joint School Essay Competition.

Ten editorial board members are being sought for the Society’s academic journal, Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers.

Seven new courses provided by Esri have now received accreditation and are suitable for Chartered Geographer continuing professional development (CPD).

Are you planning an event or conference in 2022 and looking for a venue? The Society is an iconic venue, both modern and characterful, with state-of-the-art AV equipment and experienced technicians alongside a professional venue team to support you every step of the way.

With the deadline for several of the Society’s grants, including the Postgraduate Research Awards and grants for senior researchers, only a couple of weeks away, now is the perfect time to ensure you have the strongest possible application.

Today marks the start of the UN Climate Change Conference, COP26, taking place in Glasgow.

We are delighted to announce that an exhibition marking the centenary of the 1920s expeditions to Everest will take place at the Society in autumn 2022.

A new exhibition, Picturing the invisible, is now available for Fellows and members to view in the Director’s Gallery.

The first in the final batch of episodes of our partnered BBC Radio 4 series, 39 Ways to Save the Planet, will be broadcast today.

Thinking about studying geography at university? With the growing importance of issues such as climate change, migration, environmental degradation, spatial epidemiology and inequalities, the world has never needed geographers more.

The heads of geography departments at UK universities have agreed a set of principles to guide undergraduate fieldwork in the future.

The Society’s open access journal Geo: Geography and Environment, has just launched a new open collection on urban ecologies.

The Society has recently installed a specially commissioned portrait by visual artist Steve Russell to commemorate the COVID-19 era.

Ahead of COP26, the Society is pleased to support the Oceans of Knowledge conference taking place later this month to discuss current scientific understanding of the ocean-related aspects of climate change.

To mark Black History Month, we will be sharing a range of content by and related to Black geographers who have a connection to the Society and who have contributed to a better understanding of our world.

This autumn, Society Fellow, reporter and presenter, Tom Heap, is touring the UK with a talk that explores 39 ideas that could address climate change.

Sunday 26 September is National Get Outside Day – an opportunity to celebrate the great outdoors and inspire the nation to get outside more often.

In preparation for the Society’s upcoming fieldwork grants deadlines, we are running a series of free webinars for students looking to secure funding for fieldwork in 2022.

Looking to apply for Chartered Geographer status but haven’t found the time? Then our four-week application accelerator programme is for you.

Day three of our Annual International Conference had another packed programme with 228 sessions happening across 38 stages, both online and in person.

With just one week to go until the 2021 Annual International Conference, we have put together some programme highlights from across the week which you won’t want to miss.

We are delighted to announce that the call for proposals for AHRC-funded Collaborative Doctoral Awards to start in 2022 is now open.

Congratulations to everyone receiving their A Level geography results today.

The exhibition is self-guided and features 50 of the best environmental photographs and five films that document the Earth in all its diversity.

The Society congratulates geography Professors Robert J. Mayhew, Katherine Gibson and Brenda S.A. Yeoh on their recent election as British Academy Fellows.

New data show that the number of students applying to study geography at university in 2021 has risen by 3% from the equivalent figure in 2020.

The newest addition to the RGS-IBG book series, The Unsettling Outdoors: Environmental Estrangement in Everyday Life, is now available to order online.

A new funding opportunity is available for a new collaborative public engagement partnership, as part of the creative climate connections opportunity.

The deadline for early bird registration for this year’s Annual International Conference is fast approaching, and with a packed programme of sessions planned you don’t want to miss out.

The Society and Association for Geographic Information (AGI) are running a series of joint webinars which bring together geospatial practitioners to explore key issues in putting location data ethics into practice.

Congratulations to our Fellows who were awarded Chartered Geographer status by our Council earlier this week.

This month we caught up with Catherine Oliver and Karen Rann to discuss their research, why they applied for the Fellowship and what they’re hoping to find in the digital archives.

If you’re planning a conference, lecture or meeting over the coming weeks and months as coronavirus restrictions ease, look no further than the Society’s COVID-secure venue.

Following Monday’s announcement from the Prime Minister of a four-week delay in any further relaxation in coronavirus restrictions, the Society has updated its plan for reopening to visitors.

The Geographical Journal, one of the Society’s four academic journals, has published a new editorial, The Future of The Geographical Journal: Engaging with Public Issues.

A shortlist of 50 of the best environmental photographs and five films that document the Earth in all its diversity, have been selected for the Society’s Earth Photo competition.

The Society is pleased to be taking part in National Lottery Open Week, an annual celebration of the contribution National Lottery players make every week in support of good cause projects, just like ours.

This month we caught up with Rick Mitcham and Fred Morton to find out more about their projects as part of the Wiley Digital Archive Research Fellowship.

With the generous support of our donors, we have allocated over £91,000 of funding this year to support 32 field research projects.

This year our medals and awards recognise 23 different people or organisations for their outstanding contributions to geographical research, fieldwork and teaching, and public engagement.

This month we caught up with Dr Emily Hayes and Sandra Hayward to find out more about their projects as part of the Wiley Digital Archive Research Fellowship.

Congratulations to our Fellows who were awarded Chartered Geographer status by our Council earlier this week.

We are proud to have received a Highly Commended Award from the 2021 Geographical Association (GA) Publishers’ Awards for our educational resources Discovering the Weddell Sea – Education for Antarctic Conservation.

We are saddened to hear of the death of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Our thoughts are with his family at this sad time.

We are delighted to be partnering with a number of geographers, leading UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) funded research projects, to further our understanding of the world, its people, places and environments.

This month we caught up with Dr Alicia Colson and Dr Sherezade Garcia Rangel to find out more about their projects as part of the Wiley Digital Archive Research Fellowship.

We’re excited to announce this year’s Earth Photo competition is open for entries.

We are delighted to be a partner of the Stay home stories research project which aims to understand how ideas and experiences of home have changed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Society is home to a remarkable collection of original photographic glass and celluloid negatives captured by Frank Hurley, the official photographer of the 1914-1917 Endurance expedition.

We are saddened to hear of the death of former Society President, The Earl of Selborne GBE FRS DL. Our thoughts are with his family at this sad time.

Do you have an interest in the world’s people, places and environments? Join the Society to be inspired by geography and be a part of our community of geographers.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, students have been turning to virtual ways to develop their skills and gather work experience while staying at home.

We are delighted to announce our latest online exhibition: Lights and Shadows.

We have a number of volunteer roles available on our Finance Committee, Investment subcommittee and Enterprise company board, commencing in the summer of 2021.

As the time for GCSE and A Level options nears, we will be sharing material and information about the benefits of choosing to study geography at GCSE and beyond, through our social media pages.

Following the cancellation of this summer’s exams due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Department for Education and Ofqual have opened a consultation on how GCSE and A Level grades should be assessed and awarded in 2021. 

We caught up with 2020 Ness Award recipient Nancy Campbell to discuss what the award meant to her. 

We are delighted to announce the appointment of a new editor to one of the Society’s academic journals.

The Society has launched a new webinar series to help geography students explore future career options.

We are inviting nominations from Fellows for a number of Council positions to be elected in June 2021, including the next President of the Society.

The Society and the Financial Times are delighted to announce the winner and highly commended students of their joint Schools Essay Competition.

The Government Geography Profession is hosting its third annual conference next week, with a series of plenary panel discussions and workshops taking place online.

To coincide with Antarctica Day, the Society is delighted to launch our new online Antarctic Album designed for pupils, teachers and parents to learn more about Antarctica and its adjacent ocean, the Weddell Sea.  

Chartered Geographers and Fellows of the Society are marking GIS Day with events and celebrations, highlighting applications of the technology and the impact it can have on solving problems and enabling good decision-making.

We would like to thank all our Fellows and members for their support throughout this incredibly difficult year which is paramount to continuing our work across the breadth of sectors that rely on geographers and geography. If you are able, please do renew when your subscription becomes due.

The Society’s Northern Ireland Regional Committee is celebrating its 10th anniversary today.

Geo: Geography and Environment the Society’s open access, online-only journal has had a recent upgrade which now allows audio and video files to be hosted directly within its articles.

Geographers, including Chartered Geographers and Fellows of the Society, will be featured in keynote presentations, workshops and panels at Carto’s international Spatial Data Science Conference next week.

To mark Black History Month this year, we will be featuring Black geographers from the 1800s to the present day who have a connection to the Society and who have contributed to a better understanding of our world.

All of our lectures and events are currently being live-streamed, but if you’re not able to make one of our online events at its scheduled time, you can easily catch up, or watch your favourites again, via our website.

As the new academic year begins, why not gift Society membership to the Young Geographer in your life?

Area, one of the Society’s four academic journals, has published the first editorial from the new team of Editors, Continuing conversations: Reflections on the role and future of Area from the new editorial team.

We are delighted to announce that a range of continuing professional development (CPD) courses from Esri UK and Ireland, GIS24 and WSP have been approved to use the Society’s CPD Mark.

We are delighted to announce that the call for proposals for AHRC collaborative doctoral projects to start in autumn 2021 is now open.

Our autumn programme of teacher CPD events is now available to book online.

Congratulations to everyone receiving their A Level geography results today.

If you are using your geographical skills, knowledge and understanding in the workplace, have a look at our new bank of online career resources for professional geographers.

This year the Society's Research Groups will be holding their AGMs online.

The Society is looking to revive our Urban Geography Research Group this summer and we are seeking enthusiastic urban geographers to join the new committee to take the group forward.

A shortlist of 50 of the best environmental photographs and four films that document the Earth in all its diversity, have been selected for the Society’s Earth Photo competition, opening as a virtual exhibition today.

The results of the 2020 National Student Survey (NSS), published on 15 July, once again paint a positive picture of geography student experiences across the UK.

To celebrate the work of the Dudley Stamp Memorial Award, we have created an interactive story map to give an insight into the breadth of the award and a selection of the wide range of projects it has supported.

We have relaunched the register of Chartered Geographers (CGeog) on our website.

We are delighted to announce our latest online exhibition: Hidden Histories of Exploration.

As part of our celebration of this year’s medals and awards recipients, we caught up with Dr James Esson, recipient of the Taylor and Francis Award for his contributions to teaching and learning in higher education, in our most recent Geography now podcast.

Congratulations to our Fellows who were awarded Chartered Geographer status by our Council in June.

We’re excited to announce that our 2022 Annual International Conference will be held at Newcastle University between Tuesday 30 August and Friday 2 September 2022.

The Geospatial Commission launched its National Geospatial Strategy yesterday.

The annual dissertation prizes offered by the Society, our Research Groups, the Quaternary Research Association and the British Society for Geomorphology are now open for submissions.

We caught up with Michael Jones, recipient of the Patron’s Medal for his contribution to the development of geospatial information, to discuss his career, his greatest achievement and his love of maps.

There are only three weeks left for geographers wanting to start their teacher training in autumn 2020 to apply for our Geography Teacher Training Scholarship programme.

This week is Volunteers’ Week, an annual celebration of the contribution millions of people across the UK make through volunteering each year.

Graduates in the humanities and social sciences (HSS) are as employable as graduates of STEM subjects, according to a new report from the British Academy.

New data released by the Department for Education show that over 81% of master’s level geography graduates were in sustained employment, further study, or both, five years after graduation.

This year our medals and awards recognise 22 different people or organisations for their outstanding contributions to geographical research, fieldwork and teaching, artwork, and public engagement.

With the Society currently closed due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, our summer programme of Monday night lectures is being streamed online for Fellows and members.

Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, eight members of Society staff have been furloughed.

New research from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has concluded that university study is a good investment for most students, with those pursuing higher education better off after taxes, student loan repayments and foregone earnings are accounted for.

We are very pleased to have received funding from the Flotilla Foundation to build on our work as educational partner for the Weddell Sea Expedition.

This year marks 200 years since the discovery of Antarctica, and to celebrate the British Antarctic Territory (BAT) is running a competition for children aged 4-17 to design an official postage stamp for the territory.

Today is International Women’s Day, and to mark the occasion we’re acknowledging the diversity of field research that some of our inspirational female grant recipients have undertaken in a range of countries over the past year.

Recipient of the 2019 Neville Shulman Challenge Award, Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent, will be sharing tales from her travels to the remote Nagalands of India and Myanmar in an episode of Costing the Earth on BBC Radio 4.

The Society’s four leading international journals, Area, Geo: Geography and Environment, The Geographical Journal and Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, cover the full spectrum of geographical research. And as the latest issues go to print, here is a preview of some of their content.

To mark the centenary of Eric Newby’s birth, an exhibition of stunning photographs from his lifetime of travels is now on display in our Pavilion.

The deadline for this year’s Environment and Sustainability Research Grants is fast approaching.

The RGS-IBG book series turns 20 this year, and to date it has published 57 titles spanning the full range of geographical research topics.

The deadline for applications to the Frederick Soddy Schools Award has been extended to Monday 3 February.

The latest addition to the RGS-IBG book series, Geographies of anticolonialism: political networks across and beyond south India, c.1900-1930, is now available to order online.

Our spring events programme is full of topical issues and themes - book now to avoid missing out.

Prior to his lecture at the University of Cumbria later this month, we caught up with Education Manager for Our Planet and a member of the Education Leadership Group for the WWF Global Network, Matt Larsen-Daw, to discuss his highlights of working on the series and the challenges for reaching a sustainable future.

Before his UK tour of our regional theatre venues gets underway, we caught up with filmmaker and author Reza Pakravan to discuss his love of travel, his visit to the Sahel and the issue of desertification.

Applications for our Geography Teacher Training Scholarships for those planning to start their teacher training course in September 2020 are now open.

We are delighted to announce the appointment of five new Editors for two of the Society’s academic journals and the RGS-IBG book series, alongside the appointment of a new Managing Editor for the Society’s academic publications.

Each November the Society hosts Explore, a weekend for anyone aspiring to undertake original geographical field research, plan a conservation project or travel with a purpose.

We are delighted that our Migrants on the margins resources have been awarded the 4-star award, in the Curriculum Impact category, of the Teach Secondary 2019 Awards.

With the topic of climate change in the spotlight, the results of a recent online survey, commissioned by the Society and undertaken by YouGov, have revealed that geography GCSE is the most widely recognised subject to study in order to understand the effects of climate change.

The latest addition to the RGS-IBG book series, Geopolitics and the event: rethinking Britain’s Iraq war through art, is now available to order online.

This month's Geographical features a dossier on deforestation.

We have launched a new bank of online resources to support those engaged in geographical teaching and learning in higher education.

Members of the Migrants on the margins team will be presenting their research in a session at this year’s Annual International Conference.

The latest issues of the Society’s journals are now available online.

The Society took over the Forum stage for a day at the Wilderness Festival entertaining and inspiring festival-goers with geography.

If you’re a Fellow or member and haven’t yet had a chance to visit our Earth Photo exhibition, why not join us for a member-only introduction on Wednesday 7 August?

The Migrants on the margins team were at the Hargeisa International Book Fair last week to present their research to the local community.

We are delighted to be a supporter of the Gender Action Schools Award, an initiative which promotes and supports a whole-school approach to challenging stereotypes, and ensuring all young people can reach their full potential.

Congratulations to the Chartered Geographers who were approved by the Society’s Council in June.

Today is World Population Day, a UN observance day to raise awareness about how population issues and sustainable development are intertwined.

Our 2019 Geographical Fieldwork Grant recipients are heading out into the field to begin their summer fieldwork.

We caught up with some of the previous winners of the Young Geographer of the Year competition who explained the role the competition played in getting them to where they are now.

Popular photography magazine Outdoor Photography features our Earth Photo competition and exhibition in their August issue, which is on newsstands now.

This month's issue of Geographical features a dossier on earthquake prediction.

A parliamentary debate held earlier this week about teaching migration in the school curriculum highlighted the Society’s school resources about this issue.

Our 2019 Fieldwork Apprentices are heading out into the field to begin their fieldwork.

With over 750 Chartered Geographers now accredited, we caught up with two of our CGeog assessors, Angela Baker and Dr Stephanie Davidson.

Our current exhibition, Observed on Paper, is on display in the Pavilion until Friday 14 June.

Our academic journals are now being delivered to subscribers in 100% compostable packaging.

A shortlist of 50 exceptional photographs and four films that document the Earth in all its diversity, have been selected for the Society’s Earth Photo exhibition which opens on 6 July.

This month's issue of Geographical features a look at the way in which the Earth's natural geography has shaped human societies throughout history.

The deadline for early bird registration for this year’s Annual International Conference is fast approaching.

Congratulations to this year’s recipients of our Innovative Geography Teaching Grants, Dr Lisa Ficklin and Grace Healy.

The first Ron Cooke Award has been awarded to Gregory Pearson for his A Level Independent Investigation An investigation into the form and nature of scree slopes on the North side of the Ogwen Valley.

To mark International Day for Biological Diversity we have made the recording of our recent Monday night lecture Food security: a global challenge available for everyone to watch online until Monday 27 May

The latest issues of the Society’s academic journals are now available online.

To mark Geoweek, we have selected a collection of Discovering Britain walks to help you discover the remarkably varied geology of the UK and learn more about our rocky heritage.

This year’s Journey of a Lifetime Award recipient, Redzi Bernard, has begun her two week journey travelling through northern Ethiopia to uncover the stories of everyday women.

We have plenty of freely available resources on our website to help you with your revision during exam season.

This month's issue of Geographical takes a closer look at child labour in the tobacco industry. 

We are delighted to announce the recent election of two new Research Group Representatives to the Society’s Research and Higher Education (RHE) Committee.

This year’s Hong Kong Research Grant has been awarded to Marine Roger to support her research assessing seismic hazards along the Chelungpu fault in Taiwan.

Congratulations to Dr Peter Martin who has successfully completed his PhD research as part of the AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Awards.

With the Earth Photo 2019 competition deadline only one month away, we caught up with competition judge and award-winning photographer Marissa Roth.

Two members of the Society’s field research programme, Migrants on the margins, presented at the Mobilising Global Voices 2019 conference held at the Houses of Parliament earlier this month.

On Shifting Foundations: state rescaling, policy experimentation and path-dependency in post-1949 China, by Dr Kean Fan Lim, is the newest addition to the RGS-IBG book series.

With another nationwide climate change strike planned for tomorrow, our Head of Education and Outdoor Learning, Steve Brace has highlighted that climate change is a key part of geography.

Drone technology is helping to identify potential malaria hotspots by mapping aquatic mosquito breeding habitats in Zanzibar, thanks to a pilot project funded by our grants programme in 2015.

The panel of expert judges for this year’s Earth Photo competition has been announced.

Today is International Women’s Day, and to mark the occasion we’re acknowledging the work of female geographers in developing the discipline.