To make sure that conferences organized by the IGU will maintain high academic quality. A special effort should be made for the attraction of geographers from all parts of the world to join the IGU conferences, notably those from European and North American countries, as well as from Latin America, Africa, and West and South Asia. This effort should involve consultations with leading geographers in these areas, on how to attract their colleagues from these countries to participate in IGU conferences.
To encourage young geographers, including doctoral students, to join IGU activities, by organizing a range of special activities for them, and by providing them with opportunities for their exposure to the international geographical community. For example, the setting of sessions for doctoral students in IGU conferences might be considered, and the encouragement of editors of leading geographical journals to offer awards to the best papers presented by young scholars in IGU conferences. Such an award may be, for instance, the publication of the best papers in their journals.
To initiate in-depth discussions in the IGU about the directions that the discipline should follow for its future development, in lieu of the challenges that stem from global trends, such as the liquidation of space and the environmental changes and risks. I suggest that the IGU will nominate committees that will propose agenda for the discipline as a whole, as well as for selected subfields in geography. The committees will submit position papers that will be discussed in IGU conferences and disseminated to members of the IGU.
To initiate research groups that will focus on comparative studies in different countries concerning main problems of global interest. Such research groups will allow members of the IGU to join them and share a joint development of a research agenda, which will permit the use of wide international networks for comparative studies on a global scale.
To make sure that the IGU will continue to avoid any involvement in political and international cleavages, to reject the boycott of any geographer or group of geographers, on the base of their affiliation or opinions, thus permitting the dissemination of geographical knowledge across borders. I believe that the Israeli voting in favour of the acceptance of the Palestinian Authority to the IGU demonstrates the credibility of my position in this regard.
