| Climate Science Day on Capitol Hill 2013 |
As highlighted in issue 2012-01, four individuals from our member institutions received travel awards for Climate Science Day (CSD) on Capitol Hill 2013. They were accompanied by four NOAA staff from the DC area, and also four NEON, Inc. staff. Approximately 40 other individuals sponsored by other organizations made up the total contingent for the 2013 Climate Science Day on Capitol Hill.
Participants were subdivided into small teams of two or three to meet legislators and Congressional aides. April Melvin (University of Florida), one of the scientists sponsored for the event, remarked that "Meeting with members of congress provided a unique perspective on how climate science is linked to social and economic concerns on a very local scale. This experience also gave me insights into how climate science fits into the broader set of issues politicians balance in local and national policy decisions." Aaron Pina (Colorado State University) remarked that the experience "solidified relations with congressional offices I created last year and reached out to new offices I was unable to get to in the past. Overall, congressional offices were very receptive to the climate science issues offered through Climate Science Day which made it a positive experience for everyone."
An AAAS new item describes the experience of one such team that included NEON's Tom Kampe. Tom observed the challenges of communicating how present day environmental impacts like wildfire are manifestations of climate change forecasts. AGU's Eos (Vol. 94, No. 12, Pages 116 - 117) also ran an article on the event. |
| Field Stations and Marine Labs Strategic Vision Report |
The National Association of Marine Laboratories (NAML) and the Organization of Biological Field Stations (OBFS) released a strategic vision report to help biological field stations and marine laboratories (FSMLs) anticipate and prepare for emerging trends in environmental science, education, and stewardship. Guided by seven of their current and past presidents, and with broad input from the community, NAML and OBFS identified emerging scientific trends, the current capacity of FSMLs to address these trends, and key investments that would maximize the unique value of FSMLs in the United States.
The report examines how FSMLs and MREFC facilities like NEON and the Oceans Observatories Initiative (OOI) can be complementary in many ways. For example, the flexibility offered by FSMLs allow for novel experimental approaches. The report also highlights the contribution of FSMLs toward the development of technology that were eventually designated for deployment in NEON. The FSMLs also span a very rich gradient of ecosystems, and coupled with their spatially extensive distribution, facilitates a better understanding of how ecosystem processes scale in space and time. |
| Ordway-Swisher Biological Station YouTube Video with NEON Featured | |
The Ordway-Swisher Biological Station released a YouTube overview about how the local research community will benefit the local science and education community. It includes an extended segment on NEON's site within the premises of the biological sciences. John Hayes (Dean for Research and Director of the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station), who narrates the video, expresses his hope that the experience of working and learning about natural systems leaves individuals with a better understanding of how the health of natural systems are eventually linked to our economic well-being. |
| DataONE Releases an R Client | |
The DataONE team releases the first version of the DataONE R Client for accessing open data in DataONE from within the R environment for statistical computing. The DataONE R Client provides the ability to access open ecological, environmental, and earth science data from the DataONE network of repositories, and to save data from within R to DataONE repositories that support write access. Because data are accessed via their published, unique identifiers (rather than a local file path), R scripts can be written to be portable across different users, and thus can be more effectively published themselves. |
|
Key Dates in 2013
| Feb 7 - Feb 8: NEON, Inc. Board Meeting
Feb 26 - Feb 27: Climate Science Day on Capitol Hill 2013
May 30 - May 31: NEON, Inc. Board Meeting
Jun 4 - Jun 7: ESA Scaling UP Workshops
Aug 4 - Aug 9: ESA Annual Meeting
Dec 9 - Dec 13: AGU Fall Meeting |
|
