The Cowles Award (established in 1998) honors Henry Cowles who published the first paper to appear in the Annals of the Association of American Geographers: "The Causes of Vegetation Cycles" (1911). The award is to be given annually in recognition of the best biogeographical publication of the year, honoring either books or papers. Some years, two winners are recognized, however not every year sees an award.
The Parsons Award (established in 1998 and named in honor of long-time University of California-Berkeley professor James J. Parsons) recognizes biogeographers who have had a distinguished research career, remarkable dedication to the development of undergraduate and graduate students in biogeography, and outstanding service to the discipline.
The BSG supports biogeography graduate student research through sponsorship of a grant competition. Criteria used for grant evaluation of applicants include the proposal's scientific merit, the soundness of the proposed methods and analyses, budget appropriateness, evaluated in terms of their past experience and their level of need. Normally, awards are made to one master's student for $500 and one doctoral student for $1000 each year.
An award for the best presentation by a student at the annual meeting of the American Association of Geographers has been presented by the BSG since 1987. Beginning in 2001, separate awards were established for Ph.D. students and for Undergraduate/Masters students. The criteria used to evaluate presentations include the scientific merit of the research, the soundness of the methods, analyses, conclusions, and the clarity and caliber of the presentation. Each student is judged by a panel of BSG faculty. No competition was held in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic and the cancellation of the in-person AAG meeting.