Peterson to present Steve Lavin Memorial seminar

Dr. Michael Peterson, professor in the Department of Geography/Geology at University of Nebraska-Omaha, will present the 2016 Steve Lavin Memorial seminar “Geography and Cartography in an Era of American Exceptionalism," at 2:30 p.m. Friday, April 15, in Hardin Hall, Room 163.
The seminar is free and open to the public and is part of annual two-day Lavin Memorial and GTU induction ceremony.
Peterson is a geographer and cartographer who has traveled and worked across the world as a professor. In his talk, he will examine the relationship between geography, cartography and the concept of American Exceptionalism or the notion that the United States stands apart from other countries because its history and development make it unique. Peterson will examine this concept from the standpoint of geography and cartography.
The memorial seminar is an annual event honoring Dr. Stephen Lavin, who spent three decades with UNL’s department of geography before he died of cancer in 2011. Lavin was a specialist in cartography, who was well-known for his research on map design, cartographic communication and computer cartography.
Computer cartography also is one of Peterson’s areas of expertise. He has taught computer mapping at UNMO, as well as courses in world regional geography, cartography, remote sensing and geographic information systems. He joined the faculty there in 1982.
Sabbaticals and leaves have provided Peterson the opportunity to teach in other universities for periods of up to a year. He has served as visiting professor at the following universities: University of Washington, Seattle; Free University Berlin, Germany (Fulbright); University of Hawaii-Manoa; Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University in Australia; Technical University of Vienna in Austria (Fulbright); University of Applied Technology in Munich, Germany; Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada; University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand; and Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
He also is past-President of the North American Cartographic Information Society and former editor of “Cartographic Perspectives.” He chaired the Maps and the Internet commission of the International Cartographic Association from 1999 to 2011.
His book publications include “Interactive and Animated Cartography” (1995), “Multimedia Cartography” (1999), Maps and the Internet (2003), Animated Atlas of Air Traffic over North America (2006), International Perspectives on Maps and the Internet (2007), Online Maps with APIs and Webservices (2012), and Mapping in the Cloud (2014).

The event also will include:
Thursday, April 4
• 5 to 7 p.m.: Peace Corps OpenStreet Mapathon will take place on the second-floor lobby of Hardin Hall. No experience necessary. Participants will use OpenStreetMaps Task Manager to map a village or city where Peace Corps volunteers are operating. Stewart Mills, a returned Peace Corps volunteer and recruiter, will serve as guest speaker. He’ll talk about the Peace Corps’ goals and its importance in the developing world. Register at http://go.unl.edu/dqm2; walk-in attendees also are welcome.
Friday, April 5
• 8:15 to 9 a.m.: Meet and greet faculty, staff and students from the School of Natural Resources and the College of Arts and Sciences in the Hardin Hall 163 lobby.
• 9 a.m.to 12:30 p.m.: “Mapping in the Cloud” workshop with Peterson in Hardin Hall 141. The workshop is full.
• 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.: Student lunch with Peterson, location to be announced.
• 2 to 2:25 p.m.: 2016 Gamma Theta Upsilon reception in Hardin Hall 163 lobby. GTU is an international geographical honor society. Get more additional information on the local inductees and their work at http://go.unl.edu/dc7c.
• 2:30 to 3:20 p.m.: Lavin Memorial lecture, Hardin Hall 164.
• 3:30 to 4 p.m.: 2016 GTU induction ceremony, Hardin 163.
• 6 to 8 p.m.: Social at Ploughshare, 1630 P St.
For a more information, visit http://events.unl.edu/2016/04/15/107557/ .

— Shawna Richter-Ryerson, School of Natural Resources communications associate

More details at: http://go.unl.edu/g8jq