One hundred years ago when AGU was founded there were still large unmapped places on our planet and the idea of a person stepping on the moon was a dream. Discovery and wonder have characterized the last 100 years of science as we learned the plates shift, the climate changes, and scientists are studying the … Read more
AGU represents a global community of more than 60,000 Earth and space scientists. The peer-reviewed research of our members has unequivocally concluded that climate change is real, occurring now, and is driven by human activity. The threat it poses to our human survival and the environment is real and serious. But there is hope. Collectively, … Read more
AGU, especially through the Thriving Earth Exchange, has been reaching out to communities of all sizes and learning more about what they want to do with respect to climate change. What we hear again and again is a willingness, even an eagerness, to prepare for the effects. Community leaders tell us, however, that they aren’t … Read more
The threats of climate change, growing water and energy demands and threats to human health are posing unprecedented challenges to human populations across the globe. Effective solutions to these challenges will require the expertise of the science community, in collaboration with policymakers, NGOs, non-profit organizations and corporations. It is this desire for cross organizational solutions … Read more
With the start of 2019, AGU’s Centennial is now in full swing. And what better way to celebrate than by having you, our members, create and plan events across the globe. That is why I am so pleased to announce the next set of Celebrate 100 Grants that enable our members and partners to share the wonder … Read more
After months of anticipation and hard work, Fall Meeting 2018 is now a memory. But what a meeting it was! Held in Washington, DC, from December 10 – 14, the 51st AGU Fall Meeting was the largest ever, with over 28,500 people converging on the Walter E. Washington Convention Center to share their science with … Read more
Several students and early career members of AGU have told me that they chose a career path in science for both the excitement of curiosity-driven science and the feeling that science can help them contribute to making the world a better place. Indeed, AGU’s mission includes both promoting discovery in Earth and space science and … Read more
In 1990, President Ronald Reagan initiated the U.S. Global Change Research Program, and Congress mandated that a report be released at least every four years outlining what climate change – past, present, and future – means for the United States. In the decades since, four of the National Climate Assessments have been released and AGU … Read more
Seven years ago on 11 March 2011, the magnitude 9.0 Tohoku-Oki earthquake ripped hundreds kilometers of fault northeast of the island of Honshu, spawning a 38-meter-high tsunami that devastated a 1000 km-long stretch of coastline that had been described in the 1700s by Bashō as the most beautiful in all Japan (Ehrlich, 2013). The meltdown … Read more
Earth and space scientists work in key positions throughout the federal government. As civil servants, atmospheric scientists at NOAA, seismologists at the USGS, and hydrologists at the EPA– and frankly all other agency scientists – work to help fulfill their agencies’ missions and safeguard the health, economy, and security of all Americans. That’s why it’s … Read more