The Association of American Geographers (AAG) invites geographers, GIScientists, health researchers, and other scientist working at the frontiers of geography, GIScience, and health to participate in a special symposium within the AAG Annual Meeting (April 9-13, 2013) in Los Angeles.

Building on several recent AAG initiatives together with the National Institutes of Health in this research area, this Symposium within the AAG Annual Meeting will explore new research frontiers in health and social environments, and also address progress generated by the AAG Initiative for an NIH-wide Geospatial Infrastructure for Health Research. These AAG initiatives have generated an increased awareness by health researchers as well as geographers of the core role that geography and GIScience can play in addressing global health needs, both in research and in practice. Sessions will include leading medical and health researchers, and geographers active in these areas of research are encouraged to present their work. Papers on all aspects of health research and its intersections with geography or GIScience are welcome.

Topics may include but are not limited to:

• genomes and geography

• exposure monitoring utilizing real-time GPS/GIS methods

• spatial patterns of drug abuse and treatment

• gene-environment interactions

• crowd sourcing of geospatial data for health

• mHealth and global health service delivery initiatives

• health disparities and inequalities

• disease ecologies

• interactions among environment, pathogens, humans, and institutions

• neighborhood effects on health behaviors and outcomes

• geographies of public health policies • spatial analysis and modeling of disease

• mobilities and health • health care provision, access, and utilization

• health and well-being

• methodological issues in health research (e.g., MAUP, UGCoP)

• global health research and public health initiatives

To participate in the Geography, GIScience, and Health sessions, please submit your abstract at www.aag.org/annualmeeting. When you receive confirmation of a successful abstract submission, please then forward this confirmation to: geohealth@aag.org. The abstract deadline is October 24, 2012.

For more information, please visit www.aag.org/annualmeeting, or contact members of the Symposium organizing committee at geohealth@aag.org. The Symposium organizing committee members are: Mei-Po Kwan (University of California, Berkeley), Co-Chair Sara McLafferty (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign), Co-Chair David Balshaw (National Institutes of Health - NIEHS) Amy Blatt (Quest Diagnostics) Kimberly Brouwer (University of California, San Diego) Bethany Deeds (National Institutes of Health - NIDA) Martin Dijst (Utrecht University) Michael Emch (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill) Debarchana Ghosh (University of Connecticut) Mike Goodchild (University of California, Santa Barbara) Sue Grady (Michigan State University) Tim Hawthorne (Georgia State University) Poh Chin Lai (University of Hong Kong) Jonathan Mayer (University of Washington) Jean McKendry (Association of American Geographers) Doug Richardson (Association of American Geographers) Mark Rosenberg (Queen’s University) Gerard Rushton (University of Iowa) Tim Schwanen (Oxford University) Zaria Tatalovich (National Institutes of Health - NCI)