November 15-16, 2018 | Columbia University | NYC

Geography 2050: Powering Our Future Planet

Geography 2050 is a multi-year, high-level strategic dialog among thought leaders from academia, government, and the world of business. Organized by the American Geographical Society (AGS) in 2014, the purpose of this continuing dialog is to facilitate discussion of the major forces that will shape our planet’s future. Undoubtedly, energy will be one the most important factors influencing geopolitics, environmental quality, transportation routes, military conflicts, standards of living, world economies, food production, technical innovation, and the mass movement of people. Because of its pivotal role in the future of the human species, the theme of 2018’s Geography 2050 Symposium was Powering Our Future Planet.

Bringing together people from diverse organizations and individuals with an assortment of backgrounds, AGS developed this unique and compelling program with the cooperation of the Earth Institute of Columbia University. This partnership enhances interaction and idea exchange with thought-leaders who understand geography as a geospatial science and how it applies to meeting energy supply and demand.

Symposium 2018 Highlights

Welcome - Day 1

Speakers

Dr. John Konarski (Chief Executive Officer, American Geographical Society)

Dr. Marie Price (President, American Geographical Society)

Dr. Christopher Tucker (Chair, American Geographical Society)

The Energy Context

Speakers

Dr. Amy Glasmeier (Professor of Economic Geography and Regional Planning, MIT)

Mr. John Mingé (Former Chairman and President, BP America, Inc.)

Mr. John Hofmeister (Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Citizens for Affordable Energy)

Energy Policies and Energy Futures

Speakers

Dr. Lee Schwartz (The Geographer, U.S. Department of State)

Dr. Jatin Nathwani (Ontario Research Chair in Public Policy for Sustainable Energy, University of Waterloo)

Ms. Kristin Mayes (Professor of Practice, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Arizona State University)

Dr. Sonia Yeh (Professor of Transport and Energy Systems, Department of Earth, Space and Environment, Chalmers University of Technology)

Mr. Oscar Ankunda (Energy Specialist, USAID-Uganda)

Keynote Session

Speaker

Mr. Robert Cardillo (Director, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency [NGA])

The Global Reach and Geographic Implications of China’s Energy Demand

Speakers

Dr. Marie Price (President, American Geographical Society)

Dr. Yushan Duan (Professor, School of Geographic Science, East China Normal Uniersity)

Mr. David Sandalow (Inagural Fellow, Center on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University)

Mr. Gary Dirks (Director, Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability, Arizona State University)

Lightning Presentations - Day 1

Speakers

Dr. Sean Ahearn (Director, Center for Advanced Research of Spatial Information, Hunter College)
“Solar New York: A Solar Application for the State of New York”

Mr. Anthony Bevacqua (PhD Candidate, Clean Energy and Sustainability Center, Montclair State University)
“Spatial Economics of Solar Photovoltaics in New Jersey”

Ms. Mariana Cerca (Master’s Candidate, Humboldt University)
“Sustainability Deviations Between North and South: The Social Dimension of Bioenergy Systems”

Mr. Ben Hoen (Research Scientist, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)
“The U.S. Wind Turbine Database: Watching U.S. Wind Energy Growth Quarter by Quarter”

Dr. Camelia Kantor (Director of Academic Programs, United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation)
“The Downside of Modern Energy Access”

Ms. Selene Lawrence (Deputy Director of Community Development, Sullivan Solar Power)
“California: Leading the Renewable Energy Charge”

Dr. Stanislav Martinat (Research Fellow, Cardiff University)
“Developing Biogas Energy in Rural Areas: A Perspective From Central Europe”

Ms. Elise Mazur (Research Analyst, World Resources Institute)
“Exploring Energy Access Through Mapping”

Dr. Thomas Ptak and Mr. Alexander Nagel (Assistant Professor and Graduate Student, University of Idaho)
“Community Solar”

Mr. Michael Terner (Google Partner Practice Support)
“Thermopylae Sciences + Terminology, Earth’s Eye View To Support Energy Planning”

Mr. Dean Wise (Principal, Dean Wise LLC)
“The Geography of Wind Energy”

Mr. Isaac Zaworski (Vice President, Vricon)
“How x, y, z, t Fuels the Future of Energy”

Emerging Energy Technologies

Speakers

Dr. Nuala Cowan (Disaster Risk Management Consultant, The World Bank)

Gen. Richard Devereaux (Executive Vice President, Viviz Technologies)

Mr. Christofer Mowry (Chief Executive Officer, General Fusion)

Mr. Frank Prautzsch (Reporter, Channel 5 News)

Dr. Kevan Weaver (Technical Lead of Reactor Systems Safety, Idaho National Laboratory)

Welcome - Day 2

Speaker

Dr. Alexander Halliday (Director, The Earth Institute, Columbia University)

Geospatial Technologies and Energy

Speakers

Dr. Jerome Dobson (President Emeritus, American Geographical Society)

Mr. Rodney Buhrsmith (Business Development, East View Geospatial)

Dr. Gregory Koeln (Technical Fellow, Radiant Solutions)

Mr. Bill Meehan (Director, Utility Solutions, ESRI)

Dr. Kuman Navulur (Director of Next Generation Products in Labs, DigitalGlobe)

Mr. Geoff Zeiss (Principal, Between the Poles)

Social Dimensions of Energy Access

Speakers

Dr. Wesley Herche (Associate Director of Research, Global Security Initiative, Arizona State University

Mr. Peter Fiekowsky (Founder, Foundation for Climate Restoration)

Ms. Bidtah Becker (Executive Director, Navajo Nation Division of Natural Resources)

Ms. Elizabeth Monoian (Chief Executive Officer, Land Art Generator Initiative)

Mr. Robert Ferry (Chief Executive Officer, Land Art Generator Initiative)

Luncheon Keynote

Speaker

Hon. Sheldon Whitehouse (U.S. Senator, Rhode Island)

Environmental Consequences of Energy Supply and Demand

Speakers

Dr. Wesley Reisser (Senior Foreign Affairs Officer, U.S. Department of State)

Dr. Diana Liverman (Regents’ Professor, University of Arizona)

Mr. Kevin Seegmiller (Director of Program Management, Delta Environmental Sciences)

Dr. Robin Leichenko (Chair, Department of Geography, Rutgers University)

Ms. Joanna D. Underwood (Founder and Board Member, Energy Vision)

AGS Honors and Awards Ceremony 2018

Speakers

Dr. Marie Price (President, American Geographical Society)

Dr. Deborah Popper (Chair of AGS Honors and Awards Committee)

Dr. Andrew Blowers (2018 Alexander and Ilse Melamid Medal Recipient)

Dr. Susanna Hecht (2018 David Livingstone Centenary Medal Recipient)

Lightning Presentations - Day 2

Speakers

Mr. Jacob Betham (PhD Candidate, Arizona State University)
“Universal Ethics for the U.S. Transition”

Dr. Bohumil Frantal (Senior Scientist, Institute of Geonics, The Czech Academy of Sciences)
“Repowering Wind Farms: Challenges and Obstacles as Experienced in Central Europe”

Dr. Enrique Lanz Oca (Adjunct Assistant Professor, The Pratt Institute)
“Climate Change, Dam Removals, and the Transformation of the energy Landscape”

Mr. Eric Lyttek (PhD Candidate, Montclair University)
“Place-based Bioenergy Assessment in New Jersey Associated with Ash”

Ms. Molly Seltzer (Founder and Chief Storyteller, Electric America)
“How Do Changes in The Way Electricity is Produced Impact the Economy, Landscape, and Quality of Life in Energy Communities Throughout the United States”