Grand Valley State University's Geography and Sustainable Planning Department is proud to celebrate the outstanding achievements of its students at the 2026 East Lakes Division of the American Association of Geographers (ELDAAG) Annual Meeting, held October 29–31, 2026, in Columbus, Ohio.

Hosted by The Ohio State University, the annual conference brought together students, faculty, researchers, and geography professionals from across the region to present research, exchange ideas, and celebrate academic excellence.

GVSU geography students demonstrated their dedication, research skills, and academic excellence by earning an impressive five awards at this year's conference. 

Over the past 4 years (2023-2026), GV Geography students have earned 11 awards at the East Lakes conferences

Their achievements included:

Two third-place undergraduate poster presentation awards

Emma Raisch, “ U.S. Mental Maps of Michiganders: Comparison of Lower Peninsula County Residents and Their Perceptions of the U.S. South ”

And Bryan Heiss, Peter Berdo, and Xavier Clark, “ Urban impacts on Farmland at the Rural-Urban Fringe Insights from Ottawa County, Michigan ”

One third-place oral presentation award

Antonia Sigmon, “ Confronting the U.S. Military's Role in the Climate Crisis ”

One first-place undergraduate oral presentation award

Lester Dominguez-Torres, “ Impacts of Truck Traffic and Pollutant Exposure on Disadvantaged Communities ”

The $1,000 Outstanding Undergraduate Student Presentation Award, received by Lester Dominguez-Torres for the same oral presentation mentioned above.

These session abstracts are available at this Ohio State Link: https://aag.secure-platform.com/aagcevents/solicitations/112/sessiongallery

To celebrate these remarkable accomplishments, GVSU students and faculty gathered for a special dinner in Columbus on October 29, recognizing the hard work and dedication of everyone involved.

These achievements reflect the exceptional talent of GVSU's geography students and the department's commitment to fostering academic growth, research opportunities, and professional development.

Congratulations to all our award-winning students for representing Grand Valley State University's Geography and Sustainable Planning Department with distinction!

Learn more about the conference: 2026 ELDAAG Annual Meeting