Dr. Robert Walker has been selected by the Conference of Latin American Geography as the recipient of the 2021 Carl O. Sauer Distinguished Scholarship Award. This award is granted in recognition for a corpus of important published work or other significant contribution towards Latin American geography. Sauer Distinguished Scholars are leading authorities in specific research topics and geographic areas of Latin America, as well as individuals whose research has made significant advancements towards fostering understanding of Latin America to a broader audience.
The Conference of Latin Americanist Geographers (CLAG) is a Non-Governmental Organization formed in 1970 to foster geographic education and research on Latin America. Originally an organization of specialists in the Association of American Geographers, CLAG was the first to establish its own independent structure and membership. The conference welcomes contributions from geographers, social and natural scientists from allied disciplines, as well as scholars in the humanities. Each year CLAG makes several awards to distinguished Latin Americanist geographers and others, as well as several student field study awards.
Dr. Carl O. Sauer (1889-1975) was a professor of geography and head of the Geography Department at the University of California at Berkley from 1923 to 1957. Much of the work of Dr. Sauer and his graduate students focused on Latin America, and was particularly influential in evolving cultural geography.