Professor Joe Smith announced as new Director of Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)

The Council of the Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) announced that Professor Joe Smith will take over as Director on 1 May 2018. Professor Joe Smith will replace the Society’s current Director, Dr Rita Gardner CBE, who decided last June to step down from the position after 22 years at the helm. Currently Professor of Environment and Society and Head of Geography at the Open University, Joe has worked with a broad range of stakeholders from academia, business, policy and the media on a series of interdisciplinary research and public engagement projects. The Society’s President, Nicholas Crane said: “We are delighted to welcome Joe to the Society. His experience as a geographer working with people from across and outside the geography community will stand him in good stead for the role of Director of the Royal Geographical Society”. www.rgs.org