Business Meeting (Virtual) 2020

Policy Section Virtual Business Meeting

September 21, 2020

5-6 PM PT/ 8-9 PM ET

Agenda:

Introductions—popcorn style we will go around the call and see who is on
- Anjali Kumar (Former chair)
- Caroline Ridley (Chair)
- Charlotte Levy (Chair-elect)
- Emily Graves (Departing Student Section Liaison)
- Cait Gallagher, former AAAS fellow, on public affairs committee back in the day
- Steven Elser (located Arizona)
State of the Section
- Now about 200 members, had been ~175 several years in a row
- Current budget stands at ~$5000
  - This is more than typical because we spent less at this meeting than others
  - This year offered 2 student registration grants one in-kind registration for a speaker
  - Some money is also a holdover from past long-term planning grants; keep in mind that it is unclear what these grants will look like in the future.
  - In the past we have used these funds to support larger events, gifts and awards
  - Anjali: Make note of new innovations by the student section, potential partnership to support more student attendees. Use their mechanisms, see how we could support early-career as well.
  - Caroline: Our travel grant funds tend to be under-subscribed, part of why we have a relatively large budget now.
- This year our section was featured in the ESA Bulletin
Elections
- Elections will be for Chair-Elect and Secretary.
- Nominations open will be open through October 21, 2020
- Voting will be open for 1 week: October 23 through October 30
- Send nominations to Caroline Ridley (ridley.caroline@nullepa.gov)
  - Please include contact information for the nominee
  - Self-nominations are welcomed as well as nominating others
  - Candidates for each position will be asked to write a short response to why they want to serve in the position and provide a short bio
- Job descriptions for the By-laws:
  - The Chairperson-Elect shall arrange the program for all meetings and activities of the Section, and shall assume the duties of the Chairperson whenever that person is unable to act. The Chairperson-Elect is to assume the position of the Chairperson after one year’s duty unless the active Chairperson is reelected. The Chairperson-Elect shall serve for a term of one year and shall be eligible for reelection.
  - The Secretary shall keep the records of the Section, including a current membership and mailing list. The Secretary will communicate Section activities through an electronic newsletter. The Secretary shall serve for a term of one year, and shall be eligible for reelection.
- The Chair will be the current Chairperson-Elect Charlotte Levy and Past-Chairperson will be Caroline Ridley
Quick recap of events held at the Annual Meeting-What went well? What do we want to repeat next year (and any potential tweaks)?
- Local Science Policy Special Section
- Science Policy 101 Workshop
  - Steve looked at material, appreciated material, made accessible
- ‘Mega-Mixer’ Happy Hour
  - Breakout groups are great, don’t make too timed or too tight
  - Definitely interest on doing more during the year
Brainstorming for 2021 ESA Annual Meeting
- Long Beach, CA; August 1nd to 6th, 2021
- This will be a hybrid meeting, both in-person and with virtual ‘options’
- Theme: Vital Connections in Ecology
  - Ecologists seek to understand the vital connections between plants and animals and the world around them. Collectively, research shows that ecological connections are critical for maintaining ecosystem function and resilience in the face of change. Similarly, human connections are vital for science: connections between mentors, students, and collaborators, connections with community stakeholders, and connections with our friends and family. During times of crisis, such as the recent COVID-19 global pandemic, ecologists have found novel ways to create and maintain vital human connections while continuing to make breakthroughs in understanding the importance of ecological connections.
- What types of sessions or workshops would you like to see? Any repeats from last year? What are you willing to help organize?

Brainstorming for the Policy Section
- Website (http://esa.org/policy/)
  - Are there resources you would like to see the website link to?
  - Is there more content the website could contain?
- Twitter feed doesn’t work

- Activities
  - Potential webinars in winter/spring
- Another Mega Mixer
- Interviews with our Ecologists in Washington
- Blogposts with real policy takes
  - - In what ways could the Policy Section better serve you?
  - Newsletter—would it be helpful for the Policy Section to have more regular communication with you?
  - Other ideas
- Long Beach Local Policy
  - Opportunities to discuss wetland policy
  - Use local folks to expand to broader takeaways
  - Think about themes of interfacing across land management, ecosystem benefits, not just CA wetlands (mangroves, tropics, planning)
  - How can we better support:
    - Early Career, Faculty, Students
    - Students need more resources on alt careers, important, but also reach out to faculty about how to support students
- How can we build diversity
  - Tie into the above, support professors in enabling students to pursue
  - Keep saying to leadership that we are not doing enough
  - Be careful to avoid tokenism, pressure on individuals