Environment and Ecology

The Cultural and Political Ecology Specialty Group (CAPE) is a sub-group of scholars within the Association of American Geographers (AAG). CAPE was originally organized as the Cultural Ecology Specialty Group (CESG) in 1980 with the aim "To promote and conduct scholarly activities on cultural ecological topics ranging from pre-history to third world development, and from environmental to economic problems." The tradition of cultural ecology as scholarship is characterized by efforts to integrate the theories and methodologies of biologists, anthropologists, and geographers through the practical study of peoples in place.

In 2002 members voted to include the term "Political" in the specialty group title to reflect the growing intersection of research interests among those working in cultural ecology and the burgeoning field of political ecology. Political ecological scholarship seeks to explicitly integrate and contrast the theories and methodologies of economics, cultural studies, and political science into the traditional modes of thought comprised by cultural ecology. The change of title explicitly acknowledges the growing importance of new methodologies and paradigms in human environment research as characterized by the CAPE mission statement.

Topics of special interest to members of CAPE include but are not limited to:

The CAPE Web Environment
The links to the left are found on all the CAPE website pages and serve as direct connections to topics of primary concern to members. The newsletter provides current information on upcoming conferences, member milestones, publications of interest, job postings, and other announcements. Contact information for each of the specialty group administrators is provided through the "Officers" link.

CAPE distributes several student awards at the annual meeting of the Association of American Geographers. Awards for student papers presented at the national meeting serve as an important milestone for many junior professional geographers. Field Study Awards provided research funds for the early stages of thesis or dissertation fieldwork. For information on application and a list of past recipients please visit the Awards link.

Honors for noteworthy achievement are given when Cape Officers feel recognition for meritorious achievement is warranted. This generally occurs on an annual basis. Testimonials are presented for each of the honorees.

National conferences of the AAG are held each spring. For details visit the AAG meeting website where a calendar of events will be available.

A long line of webmasters/newsletter editors have contributed to the current manifestation of this site. Robert Kuhlken at Central Washington University, who served as an editor of the Cultural Ecology Newsletter (CEN) from 1994-1998, authored the first webpage for what was then known as the Cultural Ecology Specialty Group. This was later modified by Simon Batterbury between 1998 and 2004 (late of U of Arizona, now at Univ. of Melbourne), and by Eric Perramond between 2004 and 2005 (Colorado College). The responsibilities of CAPE newsletter editor and webmaster continue to be folded into a single position currently held by Tony Abbott (Stetson University).

The CAPE Listserv
The listserv is the real-time-communication organ of the specialty group. Through it members can debate ideas, exchange news, organize paper sessions, post calls for papers, and request information from colleagues as long as content conforms to listerv policy of collegiality. If you would like to subscribe to the listserv go to the following link and follow the instructions provided there. If you encounter problems with your subscription, please contact the listserv manager, James McCarthy. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

http://lists.psu.edu/archives/aag-cesg-l.html

The Platform for Agrobiodiversity Research (PAR) was formally set up through a stakeholder meeting held in Rome in 2006. 

Many international discussions and meetings have stressed, in the last decade, the gaps in knowledge that limit capacity to enhance and use Agrobiodiversity optimally. 

In particular, this was highlighted at the International Technical Workshop on Sustaining Agricultural Biodiversity and Agro-Ecosystem Functions (organized by FAO, CBD Secretariat and Government of the Netherlands, Rome, 2–4 December 1998) and at the International Symposium on Managing Biodiversity in Agricultural Ecosystems (CBD Secretariat, United Nations University [UNU] and Bioversity International [formerly known as IPGRI], Montreal, 8–10 November 2001). 

In 2001 the Fifth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) highlighted the lack of understanding of the magnitude, causes and consequence of loss of agrobiodiversity (Decision V/5). It also stressed the gaps in knowledge regarding the benefits of high levels of agrobiodiversity and management practices that can help increase agricultural sustainability and productivity. 

The International Workshop on Managing Agricultural Biodiversity for Sustainable Development, Nairobi, 23–25 October 2003 (System-wide Genetic Resources Programme [SGRP] of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research [CGIAR] and Bioversity International) noted the value-added benefits of developing and maintaining collaboration on strengthening research on agricultural biodiversity and suggested that there was a timely opportunity and need to create a framework that would link existing initiatives and organizations. This view has been endorsed by many individual researchers.