Core Support for the Geographical Sciences Committee at the National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council

国家研究理事会于1997年设立了一个地理委员会，因为以空间和地点为基础的人类-环境科学方法已证明在解决重大社会和环境问题方面越来越重要。 2004年，该委员会更名为地理科学委员会（GSC），以表彰其他学科（如空间统计学，计量经济学，区域科学和地球系统科学）在提供地球空间和地点的科学观点方面所发挥的作用。 地理科学委员会的使命是（1）将地理科学的理论和观点应用于社会问题;（2）通过与其他国家地理组织的联络和发起这些组织之间的合作研究项目来促进国际合作;（3）通过与其他国家地理组织的合作来促进国际合作。（3）就有关地理的所有事项向国家科学院（NAS）提供建议，特别是就有关国际组织、计划和研究的事项向国家科学院外交部长提供建议;（4）作为美国与国际地理学联合会（IGU）的官方联络人，促进和便利美国地理学家参与IGU。 全球指导委员会通过开展特别研究和召开会议开展工作。 GSC计划在明年进行的研究包括审查美国地质调查局计划通过其支持USGS地理研究的实施战略，评估土地变化科学模型，对GSC的持续支持将使该小组能够继续推进地理学家和相关科学家的作用，科学家们在美国和国际上通过IGU在一系列环境中发挥作用。 委员会将继续监督最近完成的研究，这些研究产生了以下报告：学习空间思维：GIS作为K-12课程的支持系统，GIS用于住房和城市发展，美国地质调查局地理研究机会，脚踏实地：非洲可持续发展的地理信息，社区和生活质量：数据需要知情决策。 委员会还将继续提高IGU的有效性，并促进美国地理学家有效参与IGU的活动。

The National Research Council (NRC) established a Committee on Geography (COG) in 1997 because spatial and place-based approaches to human-environment science had demonstrated themselves to be of increasing importance in addressing major societal and environmental topics. The name of the committee was changed to the Geographical Sciences Committee (GSC) in 2004 in recognition of the role other disciplines (like spatial statistics, econometrics, regional science, and earth system science) play in providing scientific perspectives on the spaces and places of the Earth. This award renews core support for the Geographical Sciences Committee The mission of the GSC is (1) to bring the theories and perspectives of the geographical sciences to bear on society's problems; (2) to foster international cooperation by serving as a liaison to other national geographical organizations and initiating collaborative research programs among those organizations; (3) to provide advice to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) on all matters pertaining to geography, especially to the NAS Foreign Secretary on matters concerning international organizations, programs, and research; and (4) to serve as the official U.S. Liaison to the International Geographical Union (IGU) and promote and facilitate participation of U.S. geographers in the IGU. The GSC undertakes its work through the conduct of special studies and through meetings. Studies that the GSC plans to undertake in the next year include a review of the implementation strategy through which the U.S. Geological Survey plans to support geographic research at the USGS, an assessment of land-change science models, and a study of strategic directions for the geographic sciences in the next decade.Continued support for the GSC will enable this group to continue to advance the role that geographers and related scientists play in a range of contexts in the U.S. and internationally through the IGU. The committee will continue to oversee studies like the recently completed studies that produced the following reports: Learning to Think Spatially: GIS as a Support System in the K-12 Curriculum, GIS for Housing and Urban Development, Research Opportunities in Geography at the U.S. Geological Survey, Down to Earth: Geographical Information for Sustainable Development in Africa, and Community and the Quality of Life: Date Needs for Informed Decision Making. The committee also will continue to improve the effectiveness of the IGU and to promote the effective participation of U.S. geographers in the activities of the IGU.