The IUGG Electronic JournalVolume 2 No. 11 (November 1, 2002)This short, informal newsletter is intended to keep IUGG Member National Committees informed about the activities of the IUGG Associations, and actions of the IUGG Secretariat. Past issues are posted on the IUGG Web site. Please forward this message to those who will benefit from the information. Your comments are welcome. Contents
1. IUGG Nominations Committee Report Prof. K.-P. Schwarz is completing the report of the IUGG Nominating Committee. As specified in the IUGG By-laws (revised in 1999), the Committee has proposed "one or two names for each position in the Bureau and in the Finance Committee, seeking to achieve a reasonable balance in their geographical and professional distribution." This report will be mailed to each of the National Committees, and will also be published electronically on November 4 in a special edition of the IUGG E-Journal (Issue 11 A). The Report includes instructions for making further nominations, which must be received by the end of March. The Curriculum Vitae of the candidates will be posted on the IUGG Web site, and can be obtained directly from the IUGG Secretariat if web access is not convenient. 2. GeoRisk Commission "Budapest Manifesto on Risk Science and Sustainability" The IUGG Commission on Geophysical Risk and Sustainability (GeoRisk Commission) held its inaugural meeting June 15 and 16, 2002, at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in Budapest in conjunction with a workshop entitled "Science for Reduction of Risk and Sustainable Development of Society." Speakers were invited from IUGG (representing the physical sciences) and from Euroscience (representing the social sciences). The talks and the discussion were summarised into the Budapest Manifesto on Risk Science and Sustainability. This declaration aims to reinforce the social and vital link between the scientific community and the public to provide a general guide for scientists that deal with risk and sustainability. The text of this declaration is posted on the IUGG web site under "Reports." 3. Short Report from the ICSU Assembly The 27th ICSU (International Council for Science) General Assembly was held
September 25-28, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Those attending from IUGG were President
Masaru Kono, Secretary-General Jo Ann Joselyn, and Bureau Member Harsh Gupta,
who also presented an invited talk in the Scientific Forum on Sustainable Development
and served on the Resolutions Committee. Among the highlights, ICSU admitted
the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing into membership,
and accepted three new Associate Members (Macedonian Academy of Sciences and
the Arts, Academia Nacional de Ciencias de Peru, and Academy of Sciences of
the Republic of Tajikistan). New Officers, who will serve until the 2005 ICSU
General Assembly to be held in China, are 4. ICSU Position Papers In response to an invitation from the International Council for Science (ICSU), IUGG has worked with other ICSU bodies to produce two position papers. These papers can be accessed from the IUGG web site under "Reports," and are also accessible from the ICSU web site (http://www.icsu.org). ICSU Position Paper on Natural Disaster Reduction: Safer Sustainable Communities: Making Better Decisions about Risk, prepared by Tom Beer (IUGG Commission on Geophysical Risk & Sustainability) and Robert Hamilton (ICSU Committee on Disaster Reduction)ICSU Position Paper on Water Systems Including Quality, prepared by John Rodda (IUGG/IAHS) and Robert Naiman (ICSU Scientific Committee on Water Research) 5. Nominations invited for IAGA Long Service Medal The International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) welcomes nominations for the IAGA Long Service Medal, which is awarded to persons who have done extra-ordinary work in basic measurements or other basic activities within the IAGA fields. Of particular interest are nominees who operate observatories under difficult conditions. To make a nomination, please contact the IAGA Secretary-General, Dr. Bengt Hultqvist (hultqv@irf.se) as soon as possible for additional information. 6. IAHS Initiative: Prediction in Ungauged Basins (PUB) PUB is an international research initiative launched by the International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS) to promote the development of science and technology to provide the hydrological data where ground observations are needed but are missing. PUB will predict this hydrological data by drawing from theoretical hydrology, remote sensing, and in situ observations combined with modelling of water quantity and water quality, and will also benefit scientists and communities in need of advanced science and technology. PUB will have connectivity with existing programs in and out of IAHS that are concerned with predictions of hydrological responses, and will provide a forum, a network and the theoretical framework for integration of all existing related initiatives. Following from a first Workshop held in Kofu (Japan) last March, the PUB Kick-Off meeting will be held in Brasilia (Brasil) from November 20 to 22. All information about PUB and the Brasilia meeting are available on the IAHS Web site http://www.cig.ensmp.fr/~iahs. 7. Corrections and updates to the IUGG Yearbook now due Corrections and updates to the information contained in the IUGG Yearbook are now being finalized in preparation for the 2003 Yearbook. Please contact the IUGG Secretariat by November 28 (secretariat@iugg.org) with additions and corrections. 8. IUGG-related meetings occurring during November, 2002 - January, 2003 A calendar of meetings of interest to IUGG disciplines (especially those organized by IUGG Associations) is posted on the IUGG Web Site [www.iugg.org/calendar.php]. Specific information about these meetings can be found there. Individual Associations also list more meetings on their web sites appropriate to their disciplines.
End of IUGG Electronic Journal Volume 2 Number 11 (November 1, 2002) |
