Meghan Kelly, assistant professor of geography and the environment, has been selected by the American Association of Geographers’ (AAG) Cartography & Mapping Specialty Group to serve as the 2026 Early Career Scholar Keynote Lecturer. Kelly will provide the keynote for the AAG Annual Meeting March 17-21 in San Francisco.

The AAG is an international organization that brings together geographers—including students, educators and practitioners—and provides professional resources such as career help and networking to advance the field of study.

Established in 2023, the Early Career Scholar Keynote lectureship is awarded annually to an early career scholar. The organization fielded an open call for nominees from its members, and nominations were ranked by a committee to select the 2026 honoree.

A letter announcing Kelly’s selection noted that she is “recognized as a thought leader in the active research area of feminist cartographies and mapping,” and referred to her as a “future leader among early career scholars in cartography and mapping.”

Kelly joined Maxwell in 2023. She researches the intersections of cartography and feminist theory, particularly the role of power in data, map design and mapping processes. She has authored articles in ACME, The Professional Geographer, GeoHumanities, Cartographic Perspectives and the Routledge Handbook of Geospatial Technologies and Society.

Kelly is also an associate editor for The Cartographic Journal and an editorial board member for Cartographic Perspectives. Her cartography work has been featured in the Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, Rolling Stone and Science as well as other publications.

By Jacob Spudich