2002: Professor David Lambert

Any blog that is aiming to tell the story of the GA can't help but mention the huge contribution made by Professor David Lambert.

David was appointed at the start of Peter Fox's term as President, and he also helped appoint David, as he has with all the CEOs and also myself as I mentioned in Peter's blog entry.

For three years, I had the great privilege of having David as my boss, and it was a time when I learned more than at any other time. Here is the announcent of his appointment in GA News.

This German lecture from 2015 gives a flavour for the tremendous scholarship around the subject that embodied David's contribution to the new direction and strength

Along with Rita Gardner of the GA, David was successful in gaining ministerial support and government funding for the Action Plan for Geography - 2006-11 - 2 phases of funding.

David's inaugural Presidential lecture was held at the Institute of Education - more on that to come nearer the time.

David has published widely, and his work continues to be influential and will be for many years to come. He has written handbooks for teachers with other colleagues, as well as books on curriculum thinking, and powerful knowledge. He has also made numerous contributions to GA journals, and to content on the GA website.

He also involved me in the GeoCapabilities project to help shape the teaching resources and training course that were part of the 2nd phase of the project.

David started out as a geography teacher before moving into teacher education and ending up at the Institute of Education. For a while, he shared the job of CEO of the GA with his work at UCL, bringing some synergy between the two roles, and the CPD work of the GA and the development of the manifesto.

Here is the actual Manifesto launch at the GA Conference in 2009. David is about to show the film that we made to support the booklet. More on that nearer the time when it was created.

This was the first public screening of the film that I made to go with the manifesto, and which has been viewed thousands of times since on various platforms. You can watch it below. I remember my heart was pounding right about now:

A Different View: Promoting Geography from The Geographical Association on Vimeo.

Ideal to use at open evenings, with parents, governors, your leadership team or at options evenings.

The GA's manifesto for geography A Different View, published in 2009, describes geography as 'one of humanity's big ideas' and makes a compelling case for geography's place in the curriculum. It shows the value of thinking geographically, provides an introduction to 'living geography' and some important reflections on the changing role of fieldwork, demonstrating the practical importance of 'real world' geography. You can use the Manifesto to promote geography and in any context where geography is taught, explained or encouraged. A Different View was produced and funded by the GA, as part of its charitable role to advocate for geography education.

Find out more: https://www.geography.org.uk/GA-Manifesto-for-geography

I helped to create some of the supporting materials for the manifesto, which occupied quite a bit of my time working in Solly Street.

Image: Alan Parkinson