February 11, 2019
Dear Colleagues,
Please note two upcoming deadlines that are of special importance to CRC:
(1) The March 1, 2019 deadline for current students at undergraduate programs to apply to our C-StREAM Fellowship program, which will support seven or eight students from typically under-represented populations to participate in summer research and management internship programs at or member institutions and partnering organizations.
(2) The March 31, 2019 deadline for experienced environmental scientists/leaders to receive full consideration as candidates to take over from me as CRC Executive Director. If interested, please feel free to contact me (410-798-1283) or any member of our Board, who we wrote about in this story. Or you can simply apply directly for the position by visiting our application page.
In regard to item (2) above, I have mentioned before (in an emailed announcement) how much I have enjoyed (and am continuing to enjoy!) my role with the CRC. In fact, I have also made it clear to the Board that I am willing to stay involved as much as necessary and appropriate (for the new Director) during the 2019-2020 academic year, in order to maintain continuity and facilitate a smooth transition. Moreover, I also hope to maintain some level of long-term continued involvement, and particularly with the C-StREAM program, for as long as I am welcome and able. But I do also look forward to having more time to do other things, including spending quality time on the Bay with friends and family!
As I reflect on my tenure with CRC and the challenges ahead, it is clear that the collective ‘we’ must do more to address the complex issue of climate change. In this context, NASA and NOAA have recently pointed out that these same last last four years have been the world’s four warmest years since the necessary measurements and analyses began in the 1980s (AGU, 2019). This news comes just after much of the mid-Atlantic experienced their wettest years in recorded history (NPR, 2018). Fortunately, the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) partnership is aware of the concern and has begun ramping up its efforts to consider climate change effects on achieving its outcomes and goals.
The CRC has remained deeply involved in the CBP’s effort through its coordination of two STAC workshops on the topic, its initiation of a major CBP-funded science synthesis effort that will undoubtedly include such considerations (stay tuned for an RFP from STAC), and, importantly, through major research and education activities that are on-going at all of its member institutions. The next, May, issue of our CRC Quarterly newsletter will focus on climate change research and projected impacts, including related discussions of climate-related science research needs within the Chesapeake Bay Program partnership. We invite you to tell us more about your research in this area or of your own perceptions of the most pressing needs.
If you have any questions about any of the issues in this newsletter or wish to make contributions toward our May edition, please feel free to contact us.
Cheers and warm regards to all our subscribers!
Bill
P.S.: If you have Bay-relevant expertise (of any kind) to contribute to the CBP partnership and have not yet registered yourself with our CBED expertise database, please register here!