Meeting: March 19, 2019
Speaking to the Media Club on March 19, 2019, Alexandra Pope, the Digital Editor of Canadian Geographic magazine and Canadian Geographic Travel, discussed how Canadian Geographic is evolving into a multimedia brand.
ìWe have not been immune to the problems other print publications have been exposed to,î Pope said. ìItís made us look at ourselves as a complete brand, which consists of the printed magazines, the website, social media plus live action and events.î
Pope, who was previously social media coordinator at the Weather Network and a reporter for weekly print newspapers, now writes, assigns and edits for Canadian Geographic and Canadian Geographic Travel. She also writes online content for CanadianGeographic.ca and the monthly newsletters, administers the photo club and creates a digital issue of Canadian Geographic with extra photos not printed in the magazine.
She explained that the magazine creates and prints a few SIPs (special interest publications) per year to make Canada known to the world. They are smaller print runs, between 25-40,000 copies in total.
One of the SIPís is Canadian Geographic Kids mini magazine ñ displayed from January to August and sold independently on newsstands. This helps children to learn about unique people in Canada and hear their stories.
Kids mini magazine
There is also an Instagram SIP, a square book mimicking the format of Instagram photos. Instagram is the fastest growing social media platform for Canadian Geographic. Theyíve completed three volumes.
They are producing a map SIP as well, consisting of the best maps printed from the last few years. Itís still in production and will be available in June, 2019. Canadian Geographic is the fourth most read print magazine in Canada. It is owned by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, a not-for-profit organization, established in 1929. Canadian Geographicís first issue was published in 1930.
The magazine has six full time editors and a large stable of freelancers. They also have two full time educational staff plus the educational editor, with another full time educator in Quebec City who develops French lesson plans. They develop educational resources to ensure geography is part of the curriculum, advocate for geography education across Canada and host a summer institute for professional development for teachers to learn about the available resources.
Canadian Geographic’s educational program provides giant floor maps (the size of a gymnasium) that come with a suite of lesson plans for grades kindergarten to twelve. The map folds up into a goalie bag and can be rented for up to three weeks. They are available to schools free of charge.
The Canadian Geographic office is located at 50 Sussex Drive, between the French Embassy and the Rideau Falls. Built in 1999 by the National Capital Commission (NCC) originally as the ìCanada and the Worldî pavilion (2000-2005), it stood empty as they sought new occupants that were culturally significant. The NCC signed Canadian Geographic for a 20 year lease in 2016 and renovated the building for their needs. In May 2018, Canadian Geographic moved in.
In addition to office space the building is available to rent for special events. The building includes a 300 seat theatre to present talks, film screenings and educational workshops.
ìGeography is everything. It involves politics, society, culture (how you interact with the area and landscapes) and how they shape our relationships in the country,î concluded Pope, who is also a karaoke fan and sings for fun. ìKaraoke also reflects the geography and culture of an area through peoplesí song choices.î