Late last Friday afternoon, we received a letter and supporting information from Senator Whitehouse (D-RI) and Congressman Lieu (D-Cal), asking the AGU Board to reconsider its recent decision to maintain a relationship with ExxonMobil. Earlier this year, I informed you about a letter AGU had received from a group of members and other scientists calling for … Read more
As you know from my previous messages, the question of AGU’s relationship with ExxonMobil (and our relationship with the larger oil and gas industry) has been a topic of great discussion for the last few months. When the most recent request to end ExxonMobil sponsorship and address questions about how our community should respond to … Read more
From ocean sciences and geology to seismology and planetary sciences, when our headquarters building was designed in the early 90s every effort was made to have the structure be representative of the broad array of sciences comprised by AGU’s membership. More than 20 years later, with that building’s critical infrastructure reaching the end of its … Read more
I would like to update you on some of the feedback and information we have received since my last post, including a discussion that took place at last week’s Council meeting. I also want to tell you about the plan for the upcoming Board meeting, where this issue will be discussed. In addition to comments … Read more
By Jenny Riker, Geology Teaching Fellow, University of Bristol; AGU Council Member Last week, AGU’s Council had its first meeting of 2016. A member of the Council Leadership Team is asked to share reflections at the close of each meeting. We are now past the midpoint of our two-year terms, and with tangible momentum, we … Read more
UPDATE (22 February 2016): As you may have seen in recent news articles, this morning, a letter signed by 100 scientists, both members and non-members, was delivered to AGU. The letter calls on AGU to sever ties with ExxonMobil. First and foremost, we welcome these questions and requests from our members and others in the scientific … Read more
With the journey to progress started by the Omnibus last year, the scientific community breathed a collective – albeit small – sigh of relief. The agreement signaled that science-related agencies would be relieved from the disruption of damaging cutbacks, program delays, and costly shutdowns, allowing them to carry on with their important work. And … Read more
By Margaret Leinen, President, American Geophysical Union, Eric Davidson, President-elect, American Geophysical Union, and Carol Finn, Past President, American Geophysical Union UPDATE, 29 January 2016: On Thursday, 28 January, an opinion piece titled, “Steps to Building a Zero-Tolerance Culture for Sexual Harassment,” was published on Eos.org. The piece, authored by three AGU members, Erika Marín-Spiotta, Blair Schneider, … Read more
UPDATE: As a result of scheduling issues, the Board of Directors decision on the potential change in location for the 2017 and 2018 Fall Meetings has been delayed until later in February. The results of that vote – as well as the results of the member/attendee survey that was conducted to help inform their decision … Read more
The 2015 AGU Fall Meeting is just around the corner and we at AGU are making final preparations for what promises to be another remarkable convening of the Earth and space sciences. In addition to the robust scientific program that is the heart of the meeting, I’m excited about the diversity of activities we are … Read more