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          This year, the CGRG is holding its Annual General Meeting for the first time in conjunction with the Canadian Geophysical Union Meeting, May 4-10, in Banff. This joint meeting is certain to attract geoscientists from across Canada, and CGRG encourages its members and other interested geoscientists to submit abstracts to this meeting. CGRG is sponsoring six sessions and three joint CGRG-CGU sessions. As well, CGU will have more than a dozen additional sessions on topics including Hydrology & Cryosphere, Environment & Climate Systems, International Polar Year 2007-2009, Biogeosciences, General Geophysics, Hydrologic & Cryospheric Processes in Mountains and Polar Regions, and Extremes in Weather, Water and Climate.

        CGRG Sessions:

        • Sediment Transport in Fluids:A session of invited papers and discussion of fluid-sediment dynamics relating to sediment entrainment, sediment transport and bedform dynamics. The goal is to share new ideas and insight among researchers in different environments in which the same fundamental processes operate, including fluvial, aeolian, littoral and off-shore environments. Keynote speaker TBA.

        • Multiscale Landscape Evolution:The evolution of landscapes of scales ranging from orogens to fault scarps reflects the combination of crustal and surface processes that change in response to climate and tectonic forces. A better understanding of these processes will lead to improved natural hazard risk assessments, lower the risk of petroleum exploration, and help us more accurately predict the effects of climate change throughout Canada. In the past decade new techniques, including cosmogenic nuclide exposure chronology and (U-Th-Sm)/He thermochronology have led to insights into rates of geomorphic and tectonic processes. Numerical and analogue models of geodynamics and glacier dynamics have become increasingly more reliable at predicting the evolution of landscapes over long time periods. This session seeks to showcase new technique advances or new insights into the nature of landscape evolution over a wide range of tectonic, climate, and temporal regimes.

        • Geophysical Applications in Geomorphology:The last decade has witnessed dramatic advances in geophysical technology and their applications in geomorphology. New developments in near-surface geophysics includes improved data gathering and increased effectiveness in non-destructive imaging of subsurface structures and physical properties. For this session we invite contributions demonstrating the development and application of geophysical techniques for the advancement of geomorphological investigations including, but not limited to; glacial and periglacial geomophology, eolian and coastal processes, fluvial geomorphology and sedimentology. The goal of this session is to establish a forum for cross fertilization of ideas on the effective application of geophysical techniques and how they can advance our understanding of Earth surface processes.

        • Permafrost: As a consequence of its thermal and physical properties, permafrost is highly sensitive to disturbances, whether due to natural physical processes, climatic variability or terrain impacts from construction and development. Understanding potential changes to permafrost regimes is increasingly important as effects of climate change in the Arctic are observed, and as more regions of northern Canada are developed. Session presentations not limited to topics of geomorphic and geotechnical understanding of cold-climate periglacial processes and landforms, including monitoring results, are welcomed.

        • Landslides and Rock Avalanches: Landslides range from slow-moving earth slumps to rapid rock avalanches and include falls, topples, slides, flows or complex combinations of these factors. They commonly occur in mountainous environments, but are also observed in marine and freshwater environments and on Mars. They are often destructive, although can go unnoticed in less populated areas. The proliferation of GIS and remote sensing techniques have greatly aided our ability to map these hazards. This session will bring together researchers in the fields of alpine and hillslope geomorphology, hydrology, permafrost, GIS and remote sensing, to highlight recent advances in all aspects of mass wasting.

        • General Geomorphology: The practical applications of geomorphology include hazard assessments, river and coastal control, protection and restoration, and understanding the effects of climate change, to name a few. Presentations highlighting geomorphic applications, not limited to topics of weathering, slope movement, glaciers, wind and water transport, coastlines, karst, periglacial geomorphology, are welcomed in this session. Student presentations are particularly encouraged in this, and all, CGRG sponsored sessions.
          .

        CGU-CGRG Sessions:

        • Continental Erosion and Physics of Sediment Transport:This session is concerned with promoting an improved understanding of the physics of erosion, transport and deposition by earth surface processes and the interaction of these processes with other components of the environment. This includes explanation of patterns of erosion and denudation from local to continental and global scales and the role and impact of human activity. We would like to attract papers using a range of approaches - laboratory, experimental, field monitoring, remote sensing, numerical modeling and geo-spatial techniques. We also invite papers focusing on technical developments, especially novel developments in modeling of landscape dynamics.

        • Glacial Geomorphology: Much of the Canadian landscape has been recently-glaciated and glaciers remain active in montane and high latitude regions. This session will address all aspects of glacial landforms, especially in Canada, at all spatial scales, especially process-based understanding of glacial morphology and sedimentology from field evidence, theory and modeling. Discussion will link to other sessions, especially those on geo/hydro-cryology, landscape evolution and geophysical techniques.

        • Mountain to lowland river channels: dynamics & stability: River channel morphology, substrate and processes often change systematically from headwaters to river mouth and the Canadian landscape embodies the full range of this variation. At the same time resource activities, land-use and hydrological regime changes are having an impact on fluvial morphology, function and habitat. This session focuses on process-form relationships in river channels over the full range of river types, including non-alluvial channels, with a focus on the Canadian landscape. We invite papers on river morphology-process connections in high or low relief landscapes, hillslope-valley floor-channel linkages, downstream process-form transitions and temporal changes in morphology. We would also like to see papers that cover applications to landscape management and restoration, or the implications for river channels of land cover and climatic change.

        CGU Sessions: Please refer to the CGU-CGRG Conference Web site: http://ucalgary.ca/%7Ecguconf/

        Field Trips: Two field excursions are planned for the meeting:

        • 1. CGU field trip to Columbia Icefields on May 11, 2008. Check CGU wed-site for additional details and registration.

        • 2. CGRG-CGU Fluvial field trip: Contrasting styles of anastamosing and braiding rivers, Upper Columbia Valley, BC May 10-11, 2008

            CONTACT: Derald Smith dgsmit@ucalgary.ca and Chris Hugenholtz chris.hugenholtz@uleth.ca

            REGISTRATION DEADLINE: April 15, 2008

            DEPOSIT: $300 made at time of registration
            DATES: Saturday May 10 to Sunday May 11
            PARTICIPANTS: 10 Max.
            FIELD GUIDE: a short field guide will be made available to participants
            LODGING: Hotel in Invermere, BC, 1 night, Saturday May 10 [double-occupancy rooms for participants]

            ITINERARY:

              Saturday May 10:
                1) Meet at Banff Park Lodge 9:30 am
                2) Stop at Canal flats to examine modern braids
                3) Packed lunch provided by organizers
                4) Stop at quarry along edge of Columbia Lake to examine ancient braids
                5) Stop at Dutch Creek hoodoos - sequence of lake, alluvial, till and aeolian deposits.
                6) Stop at interbedded tufa and gravel fan at Fairmont Hot Springs
                7) Two bonus stops at meandering Columbia River near Fairmont Springs
                8) Two more bonus stops at meandering Columbia River near Raduim Hot Springs
                9) Travel to Invermere and overnight at local hotel (Inveremere Inn) [dinner costs covered by participants]

              Sunday May 11:

                1) Brief slide presentation during breakfast in conference room by Derald Smith prior to departure
                2) Drive to Columbia River near Harrogate, BC to examine modern anastamosing river by boat (bring rubber gumbo boots)
                3) Packed lunch supplied by organizers
                4) Boating on Columbia River near Spillimacheen to examine avulsions, crevasse splays and channel-fill deposits
                5) Return to Banff by 6:00 pm

          Student Travel Assistance:

          CGU offers funding assistance for student members travelling to CGU annual meetings with preference given to students from remote areas. To be eligible, the student must be the first author and presenter of either an oral or poster presentation and must be a member of CGU. Details are provided at: http://www.cgu-ugc.ca/meetings/awards.html

          Student Awards:

          • Olav Slaymaker Student Award: CGRG encourages student participation at its meetings. To this end, students presenting talks or poster presentations in any of the CGRG or joint CGRG-CGU sponsored sessions are eligible for the Olav Slaymaker Award (valued at $250 each, for best talk and best poster).
          • CGU Student Awards:CGU also offers five awards to recognize outstanding performances in scientific research and presentation by students. CGU attaches great significance to these awards and will honour the winners and their supervisors by reporting the awards in CGU newsletter Elements, on CGU website, and in American Geophysical Union newsletter EOS. Each award also comes with a $500 monetary prize. For any of the awards, the student must be the first author and presenter, and the abstract must be identified to the CGU session convenor as a student paper.
          • Three awards for general geophysics (including hydrology): 1) CGU Best Student Paper Award (oral presentation); 2) Shell Canada Best Student Poster Award; 3) Chevron Canada Outstanding Student Paper in Seismology.
          • Two awards for hydrology:1) D.M. Gray Award for Best Student Paper in Hydrology; 2) Campbell Scientific Award for Best Student Poster in Hydrology. For the D.M. Gray Award, a student must submit a 5-page paper by February 15, 2008. For the Campbell Award, a student must submit a 3-page extended abstract by March 15, 2008. Both submissions should be sent to Barrie Bonsal, Coordinator of CGU-HS Student Awards. For further details about the hydrology awards see CGU-HS website or contact CGU-HS Secretariat.
          • One award for geodesy: please contact CGU-Geodesy Section.

          The Abstract submission deadline is February 15th, 2008. See: Abstracts.

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      • CGRG @ CAG 2008
          The CGRG is sponsoring a session called Physical Geography and Tree-Ring Analysis at the 2008 Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Association of Geographers, May 20-24, 2008, Université de Laval, Québec City, Québec. The objective of this session is to provide a forum for a review and discussion of recent applications of tree-ring studies that are enhancing our understanding of the physical geography of North America. The emphasis of the session will be on presentations that focus on dendroclimatology, dendrogeomorphology, and dendrohydrology, with contributions from other thematic areas also welcome.

          This session is sponsored by the Canadian Dendrochronology Research Group and the Canadian Geomorphology Research Group, and is being organized by Dan Smith (University of Victoria), Louise Filion (Université de Laval), and Scott St. George (Geological Survey of Canada). Prospective participants are invited to contact Dan Smith smith@uvic.ca.

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          CGRG Session: Rivers and Fluvial Processes

          Rivers are a major element of the Canadian landscape and represent important wildlife habitant and economic, water supply and recreational resources. Research on rivers and fluvial processes in Canada is diverse, spans multiple disciplines, and occurs from the context of widely varying spatial and temporal scales. This special session is a forum for the fluvial geomorphic and Quaternary geology communities to present papers and posters on river and fluvial process studies. Topics could include, but are not restricted to, sediment transport, flow dynamics, channel processes, channel restoration, fluvial/glaciofluvial sedimentology, response to environmental or anthropogenic change, natural hazards, and post-glacial river system evolution.

          Organizer: Greg Brooks (brooks at nrcan.gc.ca; Geological Survey of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario)

      • CGRG @ Alluvial Fans 2007
          The CGRG is sponsoring a meeting called Alluvial Fans 2007 to be held from June 18-22, 2007, at Banff Park Lodge in Banff, Alberta, Canada. The meeting will bring together an international and interdisciplinary group of scientists interested in various aspects of alluvial fans: geology, geotectonics, sedimentology, geomorphology, hydrology, hydrogeology, engineering, resources, and forestry on fans. Studies of modern fans as well as fans that are part of the stratigraphic record will be presented. In addition to pre- and post-meeting field trips, there will be two day-long field trips in the Banff/Yoho region during the meeting. All those interested in the study of alluvial fans are invited to attend this meeting.

          For more information, see the meeting website (AlluvialFans2007.htm) or contact Dr. Philip Giles (Department of Geography, Saint Mary’s University) at alluvial fans2007@smu.ca.

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      2006
      • The 2006 CGRG Annual General Meeting will be held at the Joint Annual Meeting of the Geological Association of Canada and the Mineralogical Association of Canada (GAC-MAC) to be held at the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM) from May 14 to 17, 2006.

        CGRG Session: The Dynamics of the St-Lawrence River and Its Tributaries

          The Saint-Lawrence River is a large fluvial system with a unique evolution that has produced a most original landscape. It is characterized by many distinctive features (e.g., high terraces, in-channel lakes, variable sediment sources) that control its dynamics and response to environmental changes. The Saint-Lawrence system is also subject to severe anthropogenic pressures. At present, there is a growing concern over its response to future climatic changes. It is forecast that the mean water levels of the Saint-Lawrence may drop by as much as 0.5 to 1 meter. As the Saint-Lawrence River represents the base level for its tributaries, such a decrease in its level could also affect a large area in the Lowlands surrounding the river. Given that the vast majority of Quebec population lives near the River and that any change in its water level could have serious environmental and socio-economic consequences, it is urgent that this issue is addressed. In order to better understand and model the response of the river to environmental changes, it is necessary to examine not only the more recent dynamics of the Saint-Lawrence River and of its tributaries, but also to put these changes in a long-term perspective by examining its evolution during the Holocene and by establishing the long-term sedimentary budgets. This special session therefore welcomes all contributions on the Saint-Lawrence River and its tributaries dealing with current and past flow conditions and sediment transport dynamics and with any changes sustained by the River in the Holocene.

          Convenors: André Roy (U. de Montréal), Pascale Biron (Concordia U.)

        • CGRG President's Report presented at the 2006 CGRG Annual General Meeting. Download as PDF

      • CGRG @ 2006 Canadian Water Resources Association BC Region Conference
          The CGRG is sponsoring a session on geomorphology at the 2006 Canadian Water Resources Association BC Region Conference being held October 25, 26, 27, 2006 at the Renaissance Vancouver Hotel Harbourside. The theme of the conference is 'Water Under Pressure" and aims to address critical issues facing water resources professionals in the regulatory, research, and private sectors, who are trying to balance rapid economic development against a finite and uncertain water resource. Presentations will address topics such as water demand and availability, hydrology, floodplain management, stormwater, water quality, aquatic resources, climate change, automated water monitoring technologies, and geomorphology. There will also be a concurrent technical workshop hosted by the Subcommittee on Automated Aquatic Monitoring (SAAM).

          Organizer: Peter Morgan (pmorgan@golder.com; Golder Associates Ltd, Abbotsford, British Columbia)
          Website: http://www.cwra.org/About_CWRA/CWRA_Branches/British_Columbia/BC2006Conference/bc2006conference.html

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      2005
      • The 2005 CGRG Annual General Meeting will be held in conjunction with the AGM of the Canadian Association of Geographers, May 31 to June 4, 2005, in London, Ontario.

        The meetings will be hosted by the Department of Geography, at the University of Western Ontario in association with the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences.

        CGRG River Environment Processes Symposium

          The CGRG is sponsoring a River Environment Processes Symposium at the AGM this year. Submissions were invited for a series of inter-connected oral and poster sessions on recent research on the geomorphology, hydrology and biogeography of rivers and floodplains, especially in Canada, with applications to environmental change, human effects on rivers and riparian corridor management. There is a session devoted to urban rivers in particular. Prof. Stewart Rood (University of Lethbridge) will give a keynote talk. For additional information see the conference session website or contact Peter Ashmore.

        Special Session: Coastal and Northern Processes, Landforms, and Sediments

          The CGRG is sponsoring a special session entitled Coastal and Northern Processes, Landforms, and Sediments . The session is being presented in memory of Brian McCann and his contribution to Geomorphology in Canada. A day-long paper session is scheduled, with the contributions being collated into special journal issue. For additional information see the conference session website or contact Mary-Louise Byrne .

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      2003
      • Canadian Quaternary Association, Halifax
        • CGRG AGM was held at the Annual Meeting of the Canadian Quaternary Association held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, June 8-12, 2003.

      • Annual Meeting, Canadian Association of Geographers, Victoria
        • CGRG Special Session

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      2002
      • 47th Joint Annual Meeting of the Geological Association of Canada and the Mineralogical Association of Canada, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon

      • CGRG 2002 Annual Meeting was held in conjunction with the Geological Association of Canada (GAC-MAC 2002) in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. May 27-29, 2002.

      2001
      • Canadian Association of Geographers, Montreal
        • CGRG AGM was held at the 2001 Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association of Geographers.

          The meeting celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the CAG and was jointly organised by McGill University, Concordia University and Université de Montréal. The CAG AGM was scheduled from Tuesday, May 29th to Sunday, June 3, 2001, with the CGRG Sessions scheduled for Sunday, June 3, 2001.

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      2000
      • Association Québécoise pour l'étude du Quaternaire (AQQUA), Montreal
        • CGRG AGM
        • AQQUA-CGRG Special session: Global Change during the Holocene.
        • JRM lecture: Dr. Stephen Wolfe (GSC) presented a lecture on The Winds of Change: exploring sand dunes on the Canadian Prairies at the opening address in the CGRG sponsored session on Recent Surface Processes and Global Change immediately preceding the CGRG AGM on Thursday, 24th August

      • GeoCanada 2000, Calgary
        • Natural Hazards Symposium co-sponsored by CGRG, GAC and AGU

      • CGRG Workshop, Trent University, Saturday, September 16 and 17, 2000
        • Measurement and Simulation of Sediment Transport by Wind given by McKenna-Neuman and Bill Nickling

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      1999
      • Canadian Quaternary Association (CANQUA), Calgary
        • CGRG AGM

      • CGRG Workshop, Simon Fraser University

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      1998
      • Canadian Association of Geographers (CAG), Ottawa
        • CGRG AGM
        • CGRG Special Session: Fluvial Systems and Environmental Change - A Canadian Perspective

      • CGRG Workshop, Queen's University
        • Geophysical Techniques for Geomorphic and Environmental Research

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      1997
      • Geological Association of Canada (GAC), Ottawa
        • CGRG AGM

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      1996
      • Canadian Association of Geographers (CAG), Saskatoon
        • CGRG AGM

      • Western Division, Canadian Association of Geographers, Lethbridge
        • CGRG Special Session

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      1995
      • Canadian Quaternary Association (CANQUA)
        • CGRG AGM

      • Western Division, Canadian Association of Geographers, Victoria
        • CGRG Special Session

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