Dear KAGES members,

We hope your new semester is off to a good start. KAGES is now recruiting mentors and mentees for the 2026–2027 KAGES Mentoring Program. Members who participated last year must submit a new application to continue.

Mentors

• Eligibility: KAGES regular members who have completed a degree in geography, environment, transportation, GIS, urban planning, landscape planning, policy studies, regional studies, or a related field and are professionally active. Mentors are not the mentee’s academic advisor but are willing to share their experience and advice with junior members.
• Responsibilities: After matching, contact your mentee first to arrange an initial call or online meeting. Submit a brief activity report (half a page) at the midpoint or end of the program, or respond to a program evaluation survey.

Mentees

• Eligibility: KAGES student members in master’s or PhD programs seeking advice on matters beyond research that their advisors may not be able to help with (e.g., challenges faced as a Korean international student in the U.S., preparing for graduate study or a postdoc in the U.S., preparing for the job market).
• Responsibilities: Attend the KAGES mentoring session if attending the AAG Annual Meeting. Maintain regular contact with your mentor during the program. Submit a brief activity report (half a page) at the midpoint or end of the program, or respond to a program evaluation survey.

Timeline

• Application deadline: Sunday, September 27, 2026
• Mentor–mentee matching: after the deadline
• Program period: October 2026 – end of August 2027

Apply: https://forms.gle/DP38ALvCMSmUm8Wv8
Contact: Chanwoo Jin (Program Coordinator, jchanwoo@nwmissouri.edu) / Bum Chun (KAGES President, bum.chun@tsu.edu)

The Korean Geographical Society (KGS) and the Korea-America Association for Geospatial and Environmental Sciences (KAGES) are proud to co-host a joint webinar.

Based on a preliminary analysis of research trends in major geography journals in Korea and the U.S., this webinar aims to share key research findings and foster in-depth discussions. Experts from various sub-disciplines will discuss the evolution of research and future prospects, ultimately aiming to strengthen academic exchange and cooperation between the geography communities in both countries. We warmly invite you to join us!

📌 Event Overview

• Theme: Changes and Future Directions of Geography Research in Korea and the U.S.
• Date & Time:
  • (U.S. Time) November 17, 2026, at 9:00 PM EST
  • (Korea Time) November 18, 2026, at 10:00 AM KST
• Format: Online via Zoom
• Pre-registration: Click here to register (Online pre-registration is required)

🗓️ Program (Total: 1 Hour 30 Minutes)

1. Welcome Remarks (10 min): Prof. Sujin Park (President of KGS) & Prof. Bumseok Chun (President of KAGES)
2. Presentation (10 min): AI-based analysis results of 5,163 Korea-U.S. geography articles published between 2005–2025 (Presented by Prof. Junghwan Kim & Researcher Seunghyun Lee)
3. Expert Panel Discussion (55 min)
4. Q&A Session (10 min)

🎤 Expert Panelists

• Prof. Hyun Kim (University of Tennessee at Knoxville)
• Prof. Hyeran Shin (Seoul National University)
• Prof. Sugi Lee (Hanyang University)
• Prof. Eungul Lee (Kyung Hee University)
• Prof. Injeong Jo (Texas State University)
• Prof. Taehee Hwang (Indiana University at Bloomington)

Contact Information If you have any questions regarding the webinar, please contact Prof. Junghwan Kim (Virginia Tech) at junghwankim@vt.edu.