In cartography as in many other scientific fields, advances in research and education increasingly rely on the development of international collaborations that bring together skilled scholars and educators from many different nations. International contacts and collaborations develop through many different means, but one of the most successful has been the biennual meetings of the International Cartographic Association (ICA). The ICA has been the primary international forum for cartographic research since 1959, and it currently involves approximately 84 countries. The ICA's next biennial meeting will occur in Paris, France, in July 2011. To facilitate the continued involvement of U.S. scientists in ICA activities and to facilitate the inclusion of more Americans in international networks at early stages of their careers, this award will provide group-travel support to enable at least 18 early-career cartographers from the U.S. as well as a limited number of mid-career professionals to attend this ICA meeting. Funds will be distributed to U.S. cartographers whose applications are evaluated using a number of criteria associated with active participation in the meeting.
This award will foster greater participation by U.S. cartographers in the global forum of the International Cartographic Association. As has been demonstrated in follow-up reports from Americans who have been supported with previous travel grants to other major international meetings, opportunities abound for meeting professional colleagues from many other nations, for hearing ideas and information from a broad range of different perspectives, and for participating in discussions that frequently result in successful research collaborations.
Intellectual Merit The NSF grant supported 22 young US scholars for $1,227 each to present a paper or a poster at the 25th International Cartographic Conference (ICC) in Paris, France in July 3-8 2011. Young scholars received an additional $278 from sources other than NSF - raised and distributed through the United States National Committee (USNC) to the International Cartographic Association (ICA) - for a total of $1,500 to support their travel to the Paris ICC. Young scholars are students and those, who completed their Ph.D. degree within the last 5 years. In addition to publishing in the conference proceedings and presenting a paper, young scholars met and exchanged ideas with a wide variety of foreign colleagues and reported a wide range of benefits to their careers. Their scholarly achievements in terms of publications of peer-reviewed articles and the writing of grant proposals influenced by their ICC participation have been impressive. All young scholars made important international collaborations and some included conference material into their teaching. ICC participation provided new ideas for some young scholars’ thesis and dissertation research and facilitated the progress towards tenure and promotion. For maturing and mature U.S. scholars, who also participated at the Paris ICC, but were not funded by this NSF grant, ICC experience has been an important influence on their careers as leaders in the U.S. cartographic research community and has provided a mechanism for international leadership. Broader Impacts The evidence of return from this NSF grant and its impact on research and scholarly development is compelling in research innovation and on long-term development of research leaders in cartography. Without listing the records of the young, maturing, and mature scholars that resulted from the ICC participation, one is convinced that with about 40 U.S. scholars attending the ICC every two years, the impact on the field is significant. Current ICA Commissions address cutting-edge research and participation in the ICC allows American scholars to be a part of this leading research. The United States National Committee (USNC) to the International Cartographic Association (ICA) has more than doubled the funding of young scholars participating at ICC’s over the past decade from nine young scholars being funded for the Durban ICC in 2003 to a record number of 22 young scholars at the Paris ICC and GA in 2011. In the future USNC wants to continue this momentum of the success of the Paris and previous ICCs in drawing in new participation, especially among young scholars and under-represented groups (women, ethnic minorities, and persons with disabilities) and foster their development as the future leaders in research and international dissemination of cartographic information. Summary of Outcomes The importance of early ICC attendance on cartographic research and leadership among United States scholars is significant and compelling. Of the twenty-two young scholars, who attended the Paris ICC, seventeen attended an ICC for the first time, one had previously attended one other ICC, three had previously attended two other ICC’s, and one had previously attended three other ICC’s. The record of these 22 young scholars in terms of publications, grant proposals, collaborations, etc. that resulted (directly or indirectly) from the Paris ICC participation is truly impressive. In total, this record includes: 16 papers and 8 posters published in the Paris ICC proceedings, four papers published in peer-reviewed journals or other conference proceedings, one additional refereed paper accepted and forthcoming, three under review, and three to be submitted. Five presentations were given at other conferences than the ICC. One young scholar received a DAAD grant to support a guest lectureship in Germany that he was invited to while at the Paris ICC and three young scholars are submitting a NSF grant proposal, in part as a result from their participation at the conference. One young scholar was invited to participate in a French radio show talking about the Paris ICC and another young scholar served on the International Scientific Review Committee. All young scholars made important international collaborations and some included conference material into their teaching. ICC participation provided new ideas for some young scholars’ thesis and dissertation research and facilitated the progress towards tenure and promotion. Most young scholars, especially graduate students confirmed that funding from NSF was critical in being able to participate at the ICC.
