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Meetings Committee
2008–2010 term
Chair
Roger Daniel Beckie, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia
Council Representative
Harry Green, University of California, Riverside, California
Members
Estella Atekwana, Oklahoma State University
Wendy Calvin, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada
Gary Fones, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, Great Britain
Audrey Huerta, Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA
Rajib Maity, ITT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai, India
Marilyn Raphael, University of California Los Angeles, California
John Sinton, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii
Ex Officio Members
Catherine Johnson, Chair, Fall Meeting (2008–2010)
Peter Swart, Joint Assembly Chair (2010)
Surja Sharma, Chair, Chapman Conference Program (2009–2012)
Staff Liaison
Brenda Weaver
Committee Charge
The Meetings Committee maintains a continuing review of AGU meetings striving for excellence in all program aspects while being responsive to the current needs of the geophysical sciences community and those who have interests that are aligned with the Union. The Committee should be mindful of the long-term goals established by Council and the Union's statement of values when taking actions concerning the Meetings Program.
Committee Responsibilities
The Meetings Committee regularly evaluates the scope of existing meetings and the need for new meeting series. The Committee works with the interested constituency to develop a new type meeting. Council or AGU Executive Committee action may be required depending on the scope of a new meeting. The Committee is expected to stay alert for opportunities to collaborate with related societies, as appropriate.
The Meetings Committee is conscious of the need to retain a sound financial base for the meetings program. The Committee reviews the finances and any trends that impacts attendance at all meetings. The Committee is kept abreast of costs for major services, registration fees of other societies, and hotel costs in venues under consideration.
The Committee recommends and/or approves venues for appropriate meetings based on individual meeting objectives and policies set forth by Council and/or the AGU Executive Committee.
The Meetings Committee recommends, for AGU Council consideration, major issues or changes in directions or strategies to the program when opportunities arise. The Committee is charged with setting policies and guidelines under which individual program committees operate. The Meetings Committee is not responsible for the scientific content of individual meetings; the program committees have oversight for individual meeting program activity. The Meetings Committee may be asked to review or respond to broad issues or concerns for individual meetings coming from meeting participants, program committees or other AGU Committees.
The Meetings Committee acts as the Selection Committee for the Chairs of the program committees during the year when a term expires. The strength of individual meetings depends on high caliber volunteers. The Committee is critical in identifying and attracting suitable candidates to serve the Union in these important positions to provide smooth transitions from meetings to meetings, when there is turnover.
The Committee regularly provides surveys as a basis for evaluating participant satisfaction and to determine whether specific goals are met. The Meetings Committee recommends enhancements for future meetings, based on survey data.
AGU operates with the guidance of a 2-year plan adopted by Council. The schedule for creating this plan assures that committees have an approved plan to work with during the first 12 months of their tenure, while they are assisting with the development of the next Union-wide plan. The Meetings Committee is responsible for undertaking programs to achieve specific objectives and strategies in the approved plan and for making regular reports on progress.
Quality of AGU Meetings. Maintaining and enhancing the quality of the Fall Meeting is the Committee's top priority. Planning for growth and providing new services to keep this as the premier Earth and space science meeting worldwide is a major challenge. The Fall Meeting is expected to meet its financial obligations to the Union.
Cooperative Agreements Worldwide. The Joint Assembly, Western Pacific Geophysics Meeting and Chapman Conferences provide platforms to promote cooperative arrangements between AGU and other scientific societies. Such cooperation furthers the resources of cooperative partners by serving individual scientists and students and promotes international approaches to research.
Volunteers. The strength of AGU's meetings relies on high caliber and dedicated volunteers to serve on program committees for the large meetings and as conveners for Chapman Conferences. The Meetings Committee has oversight for search activities to replace chairs of program committees and must assure that dedicated individuals are identified early enough to provide smooth transitions for each meeting. The Committee should also consider how the pool of potential volunteers from underrepresented groups might be enhanced by getting more of them involved as program committee members.
Improved Technology and New Services. The Committee is asked to establish continuing efforts to use technology to enhance meetings services for those attending meetings and those who cannot. Such services include broadcasting talks in real-time, electronic posters, talks/sessions on demand, making previous web casts available to a wider audience, and on providing state-of-the-art abstract and registration software systems.
Threats. The major threats to meetings are a lack of government funding, substantial increases in travel costs, and other significant scientific meetings held in direct conflict with major AGU meetings. The Meetings Committee must be mindful of future threats and be prepared to react to anyone of these depending on the degree of the threat and the type of meeting.
–July 2008