Assistant Professor, University of Nevada, Reno, NV, USA

AGU embraces the global community and welcomes diverse leaders from around the world, representing various identities, voices, and perspectives. List any identities, voices, and perspectives you would bring, including but not limited to nationality, regional representations, racial and ethnic backgrounds, and any other identity you feel comfortable sharing.

I identify as a white cisgender male and grew up part of a middle class Jewish family in southern California. I am conscious of the privilege that my identity provides me, and, if elected as Earth and Planetary Surface Processes (EPSP) Secretary, I will try to use my role and privilege to increase equity, justice, diversity, and inclusivity within the EPSP community. I have a strong track record of engaging in justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) work including establishing a JEDI committee within my department, leading my department’s Unlearning Racism in Geoscience (URGE) pod, conducting annual “community climate” surveys related to JEDI in my home department, serving as mentors to students who identify as members of groups historically-excluded from the geosciences, and more (see my CV for additional details). In May 2022, the University of Nevada, Reno, awarded me both the Patricia Berninsone Award for Outstanding Service and the Making-a-difference Award for Dedication to Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity (JEDI) in the Geosciences for my JEDI work.

Volunteer experience that relates to this position:

I have volunteered with EPSP since 2013 and have served on the EPSP Executive Committee since 2015. During this time I have acted as our EPSP webmaster (2015-present) and faculty liaison to the EPSP Student Committee (2019-present). I've also helped launch several EPSP initiatives including the EPSP Connects virtual seminar series, our Twitter account, and the Fall Meeting “Early Career Geomorphologist Night.” In 2018 I organized our “Ways & Means” coffee mug fundraiser, raising $1380.

As one of the elected leaders of your section, how will you partner with your president and president-elect to communicate with and engage your members to help implement AGU’s strategic plan including its mission and vision?

If elected as EPSP Secretary, I will work to support our president and president-elect in any and all tasks they are undertaking. Traditionally, the EPSP Secretary position has focused on communication with our members. As secretary I will engage in communication via organizing and distributing our (approximately quarterly) EPSP newsletter, continuing to maintain and update our EPSP website, and keeping in close contact with our volunteers who run our social media channels. Related to this, I am already engaged in, and hope to continue, working with president-elect Kimberly Hill to organize a survey of our members so we can find out what issues are important to you and work to better serve our community at large. EPSP is currently in the process of developing a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee, and as secretary I would work with our president and president-elect to help establish and serve on this committee.

Section affiliations:

Biogeosciences; Earth and Planetary Surface Processes; Hydrology; Natural Hazards