2d. Executive Director / CEO s Perspective

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "2d. Executive Director / CEO s Perspective"

Jasper Wright
5 years ago
Views:

2d. Executive Director / CEO s Perspective Scientific Leadership and Collaboration Fall Meeting: Redesigned Fall Meeting web site and session search.

1 2d. Executive Director / CEO s Perspective Scientific Leadership and Collaboration Fall Meeting: Redesigned Fall Meeting web site and session search. Added community and social media to the Fall Meeting web site. The 2012 Fall Meeting received 21,534 abstract submissions, a 7.5% increase over the 2011 meeting. Staff is projecting attendance to be around 21,500 given the uncertainties in funds for government travel to meetings. Significant improvements were made to the ScholarOne database for managing the Fall Meeting program and abstract scheduling. The new timeline coupled with some database modifications contributed to a more usable system and few complaints from the conveners and program committee. Fall Meeting exhibits sales are currently ahead in companies and booths compared to same point in August In 2012 we have 199 companies and have sold 278 booths compared to131 companies and 201 booths in Chapman Conferences: Successful Chapmans since the last Board Meeting: o Hawaiian Volcanoes: From Source to Surface, August, Waikoloa, Hawaii (174 attendees). o Volcanism and the Atmosphere, June, Selfoss, Iceland, (121 attendees) Upcoming conferences for 2012 include: o The Agulhas System and its Role in Changing Ocean Circulation, Climate, and Marine Ecosystems, 8-12 October; Stellenbosch, South Africa o Longitude and Hemispheric Dependence of Space Weather, November, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia o Hydrogemorphic Feedbacks and Sea Level Rise in Tidal Freshwater Ecosystems, November, Reston, Virginia approved Chapmans: o Fundamental Properties and Processes of Magnetotails, March 2013, Reykyavik, Iceland o Causes and Consequences of the Extended Solar Minimum Between Solar Cycles 23 and 24, April 2013, Key Largo, Florida o Communicating Climate, June 10 14, Estes Park, Colorado o Crossing the Boundaries in Planetary Atmospheres: From Earth to Expoplanets, June, Annapolis, Maryland Page 1 of 6

2 o o Seasonal to Interannual Hydroclimate Forecasts and Water Management, July, Portland, Oregon Integrating Empirical Results into Predictive Models of Post-wildfire Responses, August, Estes Park Center or YMCA. Joint Meetings: A SEG-AGU workshop was held 9-11 July 2012 in Boise, Idaho covering the following topics: Characterization Near-Surface Structure and Properties; Advances in Monitoring and Time- Lapse Imaging of Subsurface Processes, and Thinking About Scaling up: Geophysical Methods at the Watershed Scale. About 78 people participated in this first joint workshop between AGU and SEG. 2,261 registrants from 65 countries attended the first 2012 AOGS WPGM Joint Meeting, August. Participation from the major countries included Japan (356), USA (265) China (231), Taiwan (174), South Korea (165), Singapore (125) and India (106). The joint meeting drew roughly 28% more attendees than the previous individual meetings of AOGS and AGU. Publications: The transition to the publishing partnership is well underway. The journals contract with Wiley is signed and negotiations for the book contract have begun. A joint Wiley AGU transition team is underway and the transition is expected to be completed effective January 2013 as planned. Two information sessions about Wiley have been held for editors, publications committee and council members. More are being scheduled for October. A revised staff structure has been implemented and all positions except for the Director of Publications have been filled with existing AGU staff. Extensive career support, training and professional development, and retirement planning have been implemented for staff that are scheduled to depart AGU 14 December Stress management sessions have been offered to all staff. Change management training has been given to senior staff to assist them in effectively leading this significant change. The CEO and COO hold weekly open office hours for all staff. Journal Feasibility: The journal feasibility task force is finalizing its recommendation for Council and Board consideration. Scientific Ethics: The draft report of the ethics task force is out for comment by AGU volunteer leaders. A period for overall member comment will begin this Fall with the final report expected for Council and Board consideration in December. Page 2 of 6

3 Grand Challenge: The Grand Challenge Task Force significantly advanced the shaping of the project concept over past 9 months: The task force will hold two meetings this Fall and will develop plans for introducing the Grand Challenge to AGU members at 2012 Fall Meeting A staged Grand Challenge roll-out is anticipated in 2013 Honors and Recognition: On 17 July 2012, the Council Leadership Team approved the 2012 Union Medals, Awards and Prize recipient as recommended by the Union selection committees. A revised a Conflict of Interest Policy has been developed for all Union selection committees. The Honors and Recognition Committee approved the following Sections/Focus Group awards and lectures: o GEC Schneider Memorial Lecture o Tyndall History of GEC Lecture Implemented strategies to increase nominations and address the issue of diversity in the Honors Program. Continued to develop the parameters of the Ambassador Program Approved a new Union Award called Science for Solutions Award Science and Society Placed comment by Chris McEntee on the National Journal s Energy experts blog on such topics as natural gas regulations, energy and environmental legislation, and support for climate change action/policy solutions, and by two AGU Members, Don Wuebbles and Richard Alley on climate change. Interviewed three astronauts aboard the International Space Station live on NASA TV on 19 June and made a video of the interview that can be watched on AGU s You Tube site Generated more than 3000 stories about AGU scientific findings in media around the world. For example, findings published in Geophysical Research Letters that received unusually strong coverage included: a study by researchers in the Netherlands indicating that groundwater pumping was contributing to sea-level rise (considerable coverage in German-language press); documentation of record-low Arctic sea ice (Associated Press, National Geographic, ABC News Online, The Huffington Post, international press); and a study of the impact of forced traffic reductions during China s 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing on carbon dioxide emissions (Yahoo! News, Scientific American Online, Environmental Research Web). Page 3 of 6

4 Climate Science Messaging Project: Completed initial information gathering and research (including qualitative research), as well as developed a messaging framework. Quantitative testing and finalizing a communications plan are expected to be completed by the end of At AGU s inaugural Science Policy Conference, 326 leading scientists, policymakers, industry professionals, and other stakeholders from 14 countries came together to discuss natural hazards, natural resources, oceans, and Arctic science policy in. As outcome from the conference, released a white paper, The Water Energy Nexus which is now available on the AGU website o Executive Summary mmary.pdf o Full Report Congressional science briefings on Landsat satellites, hydraulic fracturing, and water quality were held in, to educate policymakers on societally relevant Earth and space science topics and provide dialogue between scientists and policymakers. Increased the number of members included in AGU s expert outreach network by more than 20. Reached out to more than 50 members to encourage their engagement on recent hot topics in the news the start of hurricane season and a new report on sea level rise, specifically. Successfully worked with two members to place an op-ed and a letter to the editor in the Houston Chronicle and the New Jersey Star Ledger, respectively. Initiated science communication training collaborations with four science-focused organizations National Geographic, NASA, COMPASS, and the Union of Concerned Scientists. Conducted the first joint training with National Geographic at the 2012 Science Policy Conference. These budding partnerships should extend the reach of AGU s training efforts to a larger number of AGU members and enable AGU to draw from a broader pool of training specialists and methods. Engaged members in communicating the importance of science funding and travel funding to Congress. In response to a request from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, provided a list of scientists from our expert outreach network who could be consulted on heat waves, drought, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires, sea-level rise, and earthquakes. Talent Pool With NSF funding received in January 2012, convened a workshop to explore ways AGU could collaborate with other stakeholders to encourage students in 2-year colleges (where diversity is greatest) to complete 4-year degree programs and pursue careers in the Earth and space sciences. At the Unique Research Experiences for two-year College faculty And Students (URECAS) workshop, 52 participants came from 19 states, representing 2-year and 4-year Page 4 of 6

5 colleges and universities, as well as federal and state agencies and other professional organizations. They discussed obstacles, program models, and best practices related to facultyundergraduate student research as a hook for recruitment and retention. Results will inform AGU s development of a comprehensive program of support for 2-year college students interested in the Earth and space sciences. Program funding will be sought from NSF and private foundations. Instituted a monthly webinar series for heads and chairs of Earth and space science departments in collaboration with AGI. The subject of the first webinar was diverse pathways by which people enter into Earth and space science careers. Signed MOU with Earth Science Women s Network (ESWN) and worked with them to create a new web site. Site is finished and pending their board s approval. Presented AGU talent pool objectives and programs at national STEM conference held in June Organizational Excellence Implemented the membership dues increase for 2013 as approved by the Board in April Worked with multiple departments to significantly increase Search Engine Optimization (SEO) so that AGU content is far more visible in Google. Launched Association Management System (AMS) on June 24. Will launch enhanced member interface in mid-september. System is integrated with accounting system and is now AGU s primary accounts receivable. Created Balanced Scorecard for Board of Directors Created 70 new volunteer collaboration sites 2011 Audit completed AGU received a clean audit; START Audit and A-133 Audit nearly completed New credit card processing deal signed savings of approximately $400k annually Business continuity planning at organizational level completed developing department level plans Completed a Development Plan thru 2014 which includes fundraising goals for corporate, foundation, and individual fundraising and advertising revenue Launched advertising sales on AGUniverse. AGU Elections: Open on 4 September; closes on 4 October; the election is being conducted by an outside vendor called Survey and Ballot Systems. There are 129 candidates on the ballot. All voters will be able to vote for open Board positions (5) and student/early career positions (4) on the Council. Voters will then choose up to 3 Sections and Focus Groups and receive ballots for only the ones they select. Page 5 of 6

6 - Candidate bios were published in Eos and on the AGU website ( on 17 July. Frequently asked questions are also on the website and will be published in the 28 August issue of Eos. - The Tellers Committee, chaired by Bob Robinson, worked on a communications plan to promote the election; tested the election site, along with other key leaders and staff; and created a process and timeline for announcing the election results. Emerging Issues: How the current and future state of funding for science and attendance at scientific meeting may impact AGU and its members? How can AGU best execute, implement, monitor and evaluate success of significant changes in governance, culture and operations over the past several years? With movement towards worldwide collaboration in science and movement to big data, what can be AGU objectives in responding to these trends? Page 6 of 6

The IUGG Electronic Journal

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF GEODESY AND GEOPHYSICS UNION GEODESIQUE ET GEOPHYSIQUE INTERNATIONALE The IUGG Electronic Journal Volume 10 No. 12 (1 December 2010) This informal newsletter is intended to keep