Skip to main content

Divisions

Three divisions fulfill the AAAS mission within their respective territories.

To participate in division activities, members may contact the appropriate division’s executive officer.

Arctic | Caribbean | Pacific

 

Arctic Division

  • President: Philip Loring, School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan
  • Past-President: Todd Radenbaugh, University of Alaska Fairbanks Bristol Bay Campus
  • Executive Secretary: Lawrence K. Duffy, College of Natural Science and Mathematics, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK 99775-6160 (907-474-7525; lkduffy@alaska.edu)
  • Territory: The Arctic Division of AAAS is open and accessible to all scientific scholars who are working on Arctic, Alaskan, Canadian, northern or Antarctic issues, and seeks to help them communicate their interests and discoveries to others.
  • Founded: 1951, formerly known as the Alaska Division.
  • Elections: A president and executive committee of representatives are elected by mail ballot each year.
  • Primary Activities: An annual science conference usually takes place in October, often through co-sponsorship with other Arctic / Northern-focused meetings.
  • Issues: Climate, environmental change, natural resources, Arctic Health, Arctic Policy and northern people and cultures were among recent conference topics. An overarching goal of the division is to promote inter- and transdisciplinary research that engages the arts, education, natural, and social sciences. We promote activities and communication among researchers, graduate students, wildlife managers, business leaders, rural residents, Alaska Natives, high school teachers, students, and others.
  • Contact: Lawrence K. Duffy (see above).
  • Web site: arctic.aaas.org
  • Annual Meeting: 2018 Arctic Science Conference – October 9, 2018 at the University of Saskatchewan. The meeting is being held in tandem with the Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation (CRRF)’s annual meeting, which runs from October 10-12. The conference theme is Health and Shared Prosperity in the North. More information can be found at the conference website here: saskatoon2018.crrf.ca

 

Caribbean Division

  • President: Natasha DeLeon-Rodriguez, Universidad InterAmericana de Puerto Rico- Recinto Metropolitano
  • Past-President: Filipa Godoy-Vitorino, Univ. Puerto Rico School of Medicine, Dept. Microbiology and Medical Zoology
  • Territory: This division includes more than 500 members throughout Puerto Rico, Central America, islands of the Caribbean Basin, Venezuela, and southern Mexico.
  • Founded: 1985
  • Elections: New officers are elected every two years.
  • Primary Activities: Each year, the division convenes an annual meeting, usually in Puerto Rico.
  • Issues: Water, island ecology, new energy sources, neuroscience and AIDS have been addressed at recent events. The division also works with the Puerto Rico Science Teachers Association.
  • Contact: aaas.caribe@gmail.com
  • Web site: https://www.facebook.com/aaascaribbeandivision/
  • Annual Meeting: Annual Meeting and Scientific Conference of the Caribbean Division, AAAS
    Time and date to be determined

Pacific Division

  • President: Jozef Stec, Marshall B. Ketchum University (Fullerton, CA)
  • President-Elect: Veronica Galvan, University of San Diego 
  • Outgoing President: Roger Christianson, Southern Oregon University
  • Executive Director: Robert Hickey, Central Washington University
  • Territory: Serving over 30,000 members in California, Hawaii, Idaho, western Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta, and all other countries bordering or lying within the Pacific Basin, with the exception of mainland Mexico south to Panama.
  • Founded: 1912.
  • Primary Activities: An annual meeting with awards for excellence, presented at the meeting, recognizing outstanding student research contributions.
  • Contact: Robert Hickey, aaaspd.director@gmail.com
  • Web site: www.aaaspd.org
  • Annual Meeting: The Annual Meeting of the Pacific Division  March 21-24, 2023 • Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA

Related Scientific Disciplines