Geographers is a collection of studies on individuals who have made major contributions to the development of geography and geographical thought. Volume 42 of Geographers: Biobibliographical Studies explores how individual geographers have interacted with and shaped institutions throughout their careers.

Rather than focusing solely on institutions themselves, this volume examines how geographers have used institutional frameworks to advance their practices and how they have intertwined their knowledge production with both academic and non-academic settings. Through examples from diverse contexts, including Germany, Brazil, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, it highlights how institutions can act simultaneously as gatekeepers and obstacles, as well as enablers and supporters of geographical work and careers.

The volume is organised into four main themes: inter-institutional mobility, institution building, geography beyond formal institutions, and links between academia and social movements. Together, these biographies reveal geography as a discipline shaped by fluid boundaries between institutions, individuals, and society. The collection highlights the mutual constitution of structure and agency, demonstrating how geographers not only inhabit institutions but also reconstruct, reinterpret, and transcend them to broaden the scope and social relevance of geographical knowledge.

Elizabeth Baigent is University Reader in the History of Geography at the University of Oxford, UK. She is Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, the Royal Historical Society, the Royal Geographical Society, and the Higher Education Academy.

André Reyes Novaes is an Associate Professor at the Rio de Janeiro State University, Brazil. He is currently an Honorary Research Associate in the Department of Geography at the Royal Holloway University of London, UK, and a member of the commission on the history of geography at the International Geographical Union.