Association of Pacific Coast Geographers

October 22–24, 2026

Mohalu, Hua, Akua moonphases

Hilo, Hawaiʻi

Hawaiʻi Community College & University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo

We recognize that the 2026 Association of Pacific Coast Geographers Annual Meeting is being held at Hawai‘i Community College and the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, and with profound reflection offer this Hō‘oia ‘Āina, Land Acknowledgement. Hawai‘i is an Indigenous space whose original people are today identified as Native Hawaiians or Kānaka ʻŌ iwi.

We recognize that her majesty Queen Liliʻuokalani yielded the Hawaiian Kingdom under duress and in protest to the United States. We further recognize how generations of Native Hawaiians and Hawaiian knowledge systems continue to emphasize Hawaiʻi as a model of sustainability. We remain committed to promoting equity for Native Hawaiians and other marginalized groups.

The values of our kauhale or academic village align with the University of Hawai‘i System’s commitment to fostering the wellbeing of Indigenous communities through academic processes put into effect with the ten-campus, system-wide transformation called Hawai‘i Papa O Ke Ao.

With much aloha, the kauhale of Hawai‘i Community College and the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo welcomes you to the mokupuni (island) of Hawai‘i, in the moku (district) of Hilo, in the ahupuaʻa (land division) of Waiākea. This land acknowledgement welcomes everyone who gathers here.

We are in Hawai‘i. ‘Ano‘ai.

E mālama i ka ʻāina.
Take care of the land.

Schedule Highlights

Thursday,

Mohalu moon:

Kīpaepae Welina (Welcoming Ceremony)

Hawaiʻi Keynote

Huakaʻi (Excursions)

Ola Brew Hilo Gathering (optional)

Friday,

Hua moon:

Paper Sessions

Hawaiʻi Special Session

Graduate Student Luncheon

Hawaiʻi Keynote

Hilo Town Nightmarket Gathering (optional)

Saturday,

Akua moon:

Paper Sessions

Poster Session

Womenʻs Network Luncheon

APCG Keynote

Awards Banquet & Presidential Address

Join us for the 88th Annual Conference of the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers (APCG)!

The 2026 APCG Annual Meeting will be held in Hilo, Hawaiʻi, hosted by Hawaiʻi Community College and the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, October 22–24, 2026, during the increasingly fuller, brighter moon phases of Mohalu, Hua and Akua. This year’s conference invites geographers to gather in a place shaped by dynamic volcanic landscapes, Indigenous knowledge systems, and deeply rooted relationships between land and community. Together, we will share research, build connections, and explore new perspectives on geography across the Pacific region and beyond. APCG has long been known as a welcoming and supportive conference environment. We especially encourage students and early-career geographers to participate, present their work, and engage with the broader geography community.

In addition to paper and poster sessions, the conference will feature:

A Kīpaepae Welina (welcoming ceremony)
Hawaiʻi keynote speakers with messages about aloha ʻāina (love of land)
Huakaʻi (excursions)
Place-based learning opportunities
Casual evening gatherings in Hilo
Time to explore Hilo and Hawaiʻi Island

We look forward to welcoming you to Hilo for a meaningful gathering of geographic scholarship, collaboration, and community!

Conference Keynote Speakers

Thursday, Mohalu Moon

Hawaiʻi Keynote Speaker

Kakahiaka (Morning)

9:30-10:15am

Kainana Francisco

Kainana Francisco, raised in Hilo and Puna, is a conservationist, educator and kumu hula. Her educational background includes a Bachelors degree in Geography and a Masters degree in Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science from UH Hilo. Kainana actively advocates for the well-being of lands, waters and forests, while helping fellow conservationists incorporate Hawaiʻi protocols into that work. For Kainana, hula and associated practices serve as an expression of environmental kinship.

See more information about Kainana Francisco under Keynote Speakers.

Friday, Hua Moon

Hawaiʻi Keynote Speaker

Awakea (Early Afternoon)

1:30-2:30pm

Kuʻulei Keakealani

Kuʻulei Keakealani is a beloved and renowned aloha ʻāina champion, storyteller and educator, born and raised in the uplands of Kona Hema (North Kona), and now residing in Waimea, whose life has also been informed by paniolo traditions passed on from her father. She has generously shared her intimate knowledge of place with our communities, including through the elevation of ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian Language), and positively transformed our lives in the process.

See more information about Kuʻulei Keakealani under Keynote Speakers.

Saturday, Akua Moon

APCG Keynote Speaker

Awakea (Midday)

1:30-2:30pm

Dr. Sara Smith

Dr. Sara Smith is a feminist political geographer and professor of Geography and Environment at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her work is animated by a desire to understand how our ordinary lives put the work of territorialization in motion, to change how we operate as scholars and teachers in academic spaces, and to think our discipline’s core ideas more capaciously to engage with Black, Indigenous, anticolonial, and queer of color theorization.

She teaches in global environmental justice, political geography, qualitative methods, South Asia, and regular graduate seminars on territory and decolonizing methodologies. She is involved in numerous collaborations, from research groups with colleagues from across institutions and disciplines to partnerships with local artist collectives in Leh, Ladakh.

See more information about Dr. Sara Smith under Keynote Speakers.

Saturday, Akua Moon

APCG Keynote Speaker

Awakea (Midday)

1:30-2:30pm

Dr. Lily House-Peters

Dr. Lily House-Peters is President of the current Association of Pacific Coast Geographers and an Associate Professor of Geography and Director of the Environmental Science & Policy (ESP) Program at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB). Lily holds a PhD in Geography from the University of Arizona. As a broadly trained human-environment geographer and political ecologist, Lily’s research and activism has focused on climate justice, biodiversity conservation, and the human dimensions of global environmental change. Lily’s research has been published in a wide range of academic journals, including Geoforum, The Annals of the American Association of Geographers, Progress in Human Geography, Antipode, Global Sustainability, Environmental Science and Policy, Water Resources Research, and Landscape and Urban Planning.

See more information about Dr. Lily House-Peters under Keynote Speakers.

The Venue

Hawaiʻi Community College

1175 Manono St, Hilo, HI 96720

University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo

200 W Kawili St, Hilo, HI 96720

Hilo & October

Hilo

Hilo is located on the windward, eastern side of Hawaiʻi Island, on the slopes of the active volcano Maunaloa, adjacent Mauna a Wākea, or Maunakea. The Wailuku River, largest in all of the islands, partly forms the geologic boundary between the two volcanoes, and empties out in Hilo Bay, the most extensive bay on the island.

Hilo is the most populous community on Hawaiʻi Island, with nearly 50,000 residents, and has much cultural, ethnic and socio-economic diversity. The community has a long history that is intertwined with famous legends, mythic beings, chiefs and monarchs, as well as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunami. The name Hilo references the very first phase of the moon, a well-known braid for lei or cordage, as well as a Polynesian navigator. Hilo continues to function as a center for innovation as it proudly preserves Hawaiian cultural and language traditions.

October ~ ʻIkuwā

October is one of the rainiest months of the year in most areas the Hawaiian Islands, and is usually associated with the Hawaiʻi lunar month of ʻIkuwā (alternatively ʻIkuā), a month of environmental sounds - that of surf, rain, wind, occasional thunder. In Hilo, rain is celebrated in the recognition that water is life, and outdoor activities go on amidst the showers. In fact, Hilo is the locality with the most named rains - more than 50 different ones! - in all of the Hawaiian islands.

October / ʻIkuwā represents a transitional period between Kauwela, the summer season, and Hoʻoilo, the winter season. ʻIkuwā is sometimes seen as the beginning of the Hawaiian calendar. This time of year heralds the approach of Makahiki, a cultural-spiritual-political season that celebrates the elemental entity Lono, agricultural abundance, peaceful relations, games and much more.

The Local APCG Planning Team

Hawaiʻi Community College

Kaylyn Ells-Hoʻokano, Lecturer, Geography & Environment

Drew Kapp, Associate Professor, Geography & Environment, and Department Chair, Social Science

Renee Pualani Louis, Lecturer, Geography & Environment

Pamela Scheffler, Professor, Natural Science

Orlo Steele, Associate Professor and Department Co-Chair, Natural Science

Noʻel Tagab-Cruz, Associate Professor, Hawaiian Studies, and Director, I Ola Hāloa Center for Hawaiʻi Life Styles

University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo

Kathryn Besio, Professor, Geography & Environmental Sciences

Lisa Canale, Instructor and Graduate Advisor, Tropical Conservation Biology & Environmental Science

Kalani Carlson, Instructor, Geography & Environmental Sciences

Chris Knudson, Associate Professor and Department Chair, Geography & Environmental Sciences

Ryan Perroy, Professor, Geography & Environmental Sciences

Jonathan Price, Professor, Geography & Environmental Sciences

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