Geography Victoria Launch

Victoria’s Geography Renaissance: The Launch of Geography Victoria

After more than a century, Victoria, once again, has a state-based Geographical Society. On Sunday 10 November 2024, this momentous event was celebrated at the Melbourne Town Hall when Geography Victoria was officially launched. To appreciate the magnitude of this event, it's worth noting that the last time Victoria had a dedicated Geographical Society was back in the 1920s. The Royal Geographical Society of Australasia (Victoria) was originally founded in 1883, but after merging with the Royal Historical Society of Victoria in 1920, the organisation was disbanded. Today, Geography Victoria marks the long-awaited revival of geographical representation in the state.

A Visionary Behind the Revival: Geoffrey Paterson

While Geoff Paterson was unable to attend the event, his tireless dedication to the cause was a driving force behind Geography Victoria’s rebirth. For over three decades Geoff championed the need for a geographical society in Victoria, advocating for the preservation and promotion of geography as a vital discipline. His efforts culminated in the 2021 paper Towards representing and promoting Geography to all Victorians, which was presented to the Steering Committee in June 2021 and became the impetus of discussion and planning to re-form the society. His work was formally acknowledged at the launch.

The Importance of Geography – The Science of Place

The formal proceedings began after a lively afternoon tea, where 132 attendees rekindled old friendships and acquaintances, and made new connections. 

Guests enjoy afternoon tea at the Geography Victoria launch, Melbourne Town Hall

Prof Ian Rutherfurd, Geography Victoria Interim Board Chair, warmly welcomed the attendees and acknowledged the historical moment of launching Geography Victoria. 
 

Ian then introduced Anna-Maria Arabia – Chief Executive, Australian Academy of Science (AAS) – and invited her to make some opening remarks. Anna-Maria spoke encouragingly of the formation of Geography Victoria and reinforced AAS’s ongoing commitment to the success and growth of the organisation, underlining the vital role geography plays in understanding our world. 

Exploring Geography: Hands-On, Relevant, and Fun

A highlight was a dynamic panel discussion on the topic of ‘Geography: Hands-on, Relevant, and Fun’. Moderated by Rob Gell AM, Patron of Geography Victoria and President of the Royal Society of Victoria, the panel featured esteemed experts in the field: 
•    Professor Libby Porter - Director of the Centre for Urban Research at RMIT University
•    James Currie – Geospatial Scientist at Senversa supporting both geospatial and analytics work
•    Distinguished Emeritus Professor Iain Hay – Flinders University and Chair of Aust Academy of Science’s National Committee for Geographical Science 
•    Cris Ramos –Manager, Vicmap Strategy and Engagement, Dept of Transport and Planning.

James Currie, Professor Libby Porter, Cris Ramos and Distinguished Emeritus Professor Iain Hay take part in the panel discussion facilitated by Geography Victoria Patron, Rob Gell AM

A key moment of the discussion came when Emeritus Professor Ian Hay passionately argued for geography to be recognized as its own discipline as the science of place rather than a discipline that bridges the sciences and humanities. This statement resonated deeply with both the panel and the audience. 

A Momentous Official Launch

The event culminated in the official launch of Geography Victoria by one of Geography’s most passionate supporters, Tim Costello, AO, who shared his personal reflections on the power and importance of geography. Tim spoke eloquently about how geography has shaped his understanding of the world and how it continues to influence his work in meaningful ways. His thoughtful words were the perfect tribute to this occasion. 

Geography Victoria is incredibly grateful to Tim for his continued support of geography as a critical discipline that connects us all to our world, past and present. 

Tim Costello AO, officially launches Geography Victoria

Prof Ian Rutherfurd closed the event by encouraging people of all ages to become involved with Geography Victoria – being involved in the activities and forums to come, joining Geography Victoria as a member, volunteering on the myriad of tasks that are on offer for a start-up organisation.

 
Interim Board members Glenn Cockerton, Penny Beeston, Professor Ian Rutherfurd, Libby Hillman and Garry Moore with guest speakers, Tim Costello AO and Anna-Maria Arabia. (Absent from photo were Interim Board members Professor Robyn Bartel and Rob Berry) 

Steering Committee members Rob Gell AM, Judy Mraz, Jeffrey Luckins, Penny Beeston, Stephen Latham, Stephen Matthews, Libby Hillman and Sid Verma. (Absent from photo Rob Berry)

Volunteers were integral in ensuring the launch progressed efficiently: Margaret Bourke, Rob Berry (Geography Victoria Interim Board member), Andrew Veal, Kate Vaux and Philippa Hillman-Laub 

Displays

It was wonderful for guests to view the displays and speak to the those who have developed geographical information in a diverse array of formats. Event displays were presented by ScapebySam, Geocaching Victoria, Open Trees and Trainle and Victorian Women’s Health Atlas.

• Samuel Mollema’s display – an Australian LEGO® Artist and model-maker with models of Melbourne CBD and Bendigo.
• Jenny Ward’s display of the Victorian Women’s Health Atlas, a tool to assist in the identification of gender impacts on key health areas.
• Peter McClive’s display – Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. Geocaching Victoria is a not-for-profit incorporation that seeks to promote the pastime of geocaching in the state of Victoria.
• Steve Bennett is a freelance web mapping and open data expert who specialises in visualising large datasets including Open Trees - a visualisation of over 13 million trees in cities around the world. Steve is also the creator of the game Trainle.  

Attendees at the launch of Geography Victoria: 

Adriana Abels, Ash  Alam, Jeremy Alcorn, Dimitar Anguelov, Anna-Maria Arabia, Le-anne Bannan, Robyn Bartel, Simon Batterbury, Pat Beeson, Penny Beeston, Stephen Bennett, Astrid Milena Bernal Rubio, Rob  Berry, Monica Bini, David Bissell, Josephine Boateng, Mark Boon, Marg Bourke, Richard Broome AM, Leonie Brown, Philippa Burgess, Andrew  Burridge, Mary Burton, Susan Caldis, Rosemary Cameron, Doug Cargeeg, Bill Cartwright, Niranjan Casinader, Mary Catus-Wood, Glenn Cockerton, Ruth Cockerton, Tim Costello AO, Lesley Crowe-Delaney, Graham Currie, James Currie, Jenny Currie, Michael da Roza, Dennis Delaney, Maria Dumin, Charlize Espaldon, Bruna Evans, Simon Evans, Alexis Farr, Helen Francis, Jennifer Fraser, Rob Gell AM, Elizabeth Gibson, Ken Gillan, Juan Giraldo, Ken Griffiths, Sara Guest, Andrew Gunn, Ben Hague, Melissa Harris, Iain Hay, Libby Hillman, Peter Hillman, Philippa Hillman-Laub, Peter Hogan, Lucas Holden, Catherine Holmes, Hong Jiang, Louise Johnson, Gillian Johnston, Jemima Joseph, Svenja Keele, David Kelly, Adam Kessler, Jenne King, Jeana Kriewaldt, Stephen Latham, Sue Laub, Joanne Lee, Nigel Lester, Peter Lewis, Michele Lobo, Jeffrey Luckins, Susan Mahar, Timothy Mahar, Beryl Marquette, Andrew Marshall, Marcelle Matthews, Stephen Matthews, Peter McClive, Tania McClive, Jo McCoy, Emma McCrae, Ian McLean, Sylvia McLean, Judy McPherson, Samuel Mollema, Garry Moore, Geraldine Moore, Judy Mraz, Les Mullins, Juju Munns, Genevieve Newton, Viv Nichols, Dorothy Olive, Rebecca Olive, Richard Olive, Kate Ord, Lindsay Perry, Libby Porter, Dorothy Prescott, Cristhiane Ramos, Christoper Rawlinson, Sarah Robertson, Ian Rutherfurd, Alan Sherwood, Anita Shie, Marty  Singh, Julie Smith, Mohoua Sobnam, Mariela Soto-Berelov, Gemma Sou, Bill Stringer, Glen Stringer, Jane Sykes, Yardena Tankel, Nigel Tapper, Peter Thomas, Christopher Thomson, Annette Treasure, Marita Tripp, Kate Vaux, Andrew Veal, Sid Verma, Jenny Ward, Elissa Waters, Jacquie White, Geoff Williams

Apologies were received from:

Rob Adams, Linden Ashcroft, Lesley Branton, Amanda Caples, Philip Collier, Brian Cook, James Driscoll, Craig Eloranta, Megan Farrelly, Mike Flattley, Colin Green, Irene Harrington, Ana Lara Heyns, Mina Jahanshahi, Richard Jones, Simon Jones, Graeme Kernich, Andrew King, Shirley Lahtinen, Cecily Maller, Felicity McCormack, Terry McMeekin, Warden Mersey, Colin Mitchell, Teresa Mitchell, Zaffar Mohamed-Ghouse, Colette Mortreux, Melissa Nursey-Bray, Geoff Paterson, Amy Prendergast, Prudence Perry, Gita Pupedis, Nicholas Rees, Anne Sarr, Eva Sarr, Mark Shortis, Roger Smith, Chris Stoltz, Robert Stopajnik, Qian (Chayn) Sun, Rowan Tatchell, Sophia Tsang, Maurits Van Der Vlugt, Djuke Veldhuis, Rob Vertessy, Tony Wheeler, Lyn White, Kate Williams, Mike Williams, Nicola Williams, Stephan Winter, Vanessa Wong.

Representatives of the following organisations supporting the launch of Geography Victoria included:

Australian Academy of Science; Australian Geography Teachers’ Association; Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society; Curtin University, WA; Deakin University; Department of Transport and Planning; Development Victoria; Field Force Planning Pty Ltd; Flinders University, SA; FrontierSI; Geocaching Victoria; Geography Victoria; Geography Teachers’ Association of NSW/ACT; Geography Teachers’ Association of Victoria; Institute of Australian Geographers; Macquarie University; Melbourne Water; Monash University; NGIS Victoria; Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology; The Royal Society of Victoria; Royal Historical Society of Victoria; ScapebySam (LEGO); Senversa; Spatial Vision; The University of Melbourne; Trainle; Watertrust Australia; University of Wollongong, NSW; Victorian Marine Coastal Council; Victorian Women's Health Atlas.

Letters of support were received from the following:

Royal Geographical Society of South Australia

From New Zealand

From Alaric Maude

From the United Kingdom

Geography Victoria Launch Program