Message from the President: ASLO: Advancing Aquatic Sciences Across the Globe

Abstract

As I write this, I continue to bask in the glow of the incredibly successful and inspiring Ocean Sciences Meeting (OSM) that was held in New Orleans in late February. Attracting approximately 5500 participants from 60 (yes 60!) countries, this meeting offered >200 oral sessions, >70 town halls, 25 workshops, countless posters, and a diverse suite of keynote speakers and other activities. It was energizing, fun, creative, and scientifically challenging. The three societies that jointly sponsored the OSM also highlighted their recent awardees in keynote presentations. These included the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Sverdrup Lecture given by Ronnie Glud from the University of Southern Denmark (AGU), The Oceanography Society (TOS) Ocean Observing Team Award talk presented by Oscar Schofield and Scott Glenn on behalf of the Rutgers University Center for Ocean Observing Laboratory (RU COOL), and ASLO's G. Evelyn Hutchinson recipient presentation from Liz Kujawinski from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. These and other plenary speakers were bookended in the week-long program by local residents and elders who, through their storytelling and honest and open dialog, conveyed the regional environmental impacts in their communities and the depth of their local connection with water and their ancestral lands.

The Ocean Sciences Meeting is one of the crown jewels in the ALSO portfolio of meetings. Another jewel in the crown is the Aquatic Sciences Meeting (ASM), the most recent of which was the beautiful and successful meeting last June in Mallorca. That meeting attracted 2400 participants from 72 (yes 72!) countries. Not having been together for years, this first in-person meeting since the pandemic underscored the desire, the need, and the relationships, bonds, and friendships that come from being together face-to-face. Friendships and alliances with colleagues were renewed and developed from across the globe.

ASLO clearly advances aquatic sciences across the globe.

ASLO has traditionally had a cycle of three meetings every two years. Around February of odd years, the ASM is ASLO's major, sole-society meeting. In the same season in even years, ASLO co-hosts the already mentioned OSM with sister societies, AGU and TOS. Given the COVID disruptions and the need to reschedule many meetings, our calendar of meetings has been somewhat skewed over the last few years (and will be off kilter until 2027), but even with disruptions to the schedule, these are meetings that ASLO proudly sponsors. In addition—and by the time this article is printed—the June meeting, also held every other year, will have occurred in Madison and we will be basking in the glow of its success. This traditionally has been a must-attend event for our freshwater scientists.

ASLO recognizes that while it is the only society that has cross-cutting programs across the spectrum of aquatic sciences, there are many benefits from working together with other societies to offer new, innovative, and comprehensive meetings that attract a diverse, and, yes, international, suite of aquatic scientists. In 2014, and again in 2022, ASLO co-sponsored the Joint Aquatic Science Meeting (JASM), a collaboration of up to 10 scientific societies each with different foci on the aquatic realm. The most recent JASM brought together over 3000 scientists, students, practitioners, resource agency staff, and industry representatives. Planning for the next JASM in 2028 is currently underway. Stay tuned!

ASLO advances aquatic sciences across the globe—with partners.

In the next year, ASLO will be reaching out to engage colleagues further across the globe. ASLO is doing so by partnering with other societies and meetings that allow us to extend our welcome tent while at the same time not altering our crown jewel events. That is, we will be co-sponsoring events that are planned, and would have occurred with or without ASLO's involvement.

Two such events deserve special mention. The first is our co-sponsorship of the SIL (International Society of Limnology) society meeting that will have taken place in Brazil in early May, just before publication of this issue of the Bulletin. I am sure it was a huge success! The Global South is a part of the world where ASLO hopes to engage new members and collaborations. This meeting also set a priority of engaging indigenous people together with non-indigenous people in working to develop a more sustainable future. ASLO's collaboration with SIL, which began in 2022 at their congress in Germany, will continue in 2026 when ASLO and SIL together will co-sponsor the traditional June ASLO meeting. Join us in Montreal for that event if you can.

Another meeting that we will co-sponsor in 2025 is the Xiamen Symposium on Marine Environmental Sciences (commonly referred to as XMAS). This is a biannual event, always held right after Christmas at the start of the New Year and in the beautiful and welcoming city of Xiamen, China. More than 10 years in the making, this collaboration between XMAS and ASLO provides another opportunity to reach colleagues in a part of the world where our footprint has traditionally been small. The last XMAS meeting (2023), although hybrid due to the lingering COVID shadow, attracted over 1000 participants from 35 (yes, 35!) countries not only from the Indo-Pacific region but from across the world. At the forthcoming conference, we will use the opportunity to host workshops and promote the value of membership in ASLO. This co-sponsorship does not substitute for our regular meetings; it is an opportunity for us to engage in an otherwise scheduled event across the world, enabling us to reach a potential new audience.

Co-sponsored meetings will enhance our crown jewel ASLO events. Co-sponsorships allow us to reach potential new members. If we can reach out to parts of the world where ASLO has historically not been present, we hope that we can welcome and embrace more of the global world of aquatic science and aquatic scientists. Attend these events if you can; extend a welcoming ASLO hand to those who may have historically not been able to attend one of ASLO's primary events. If you cannot attend these conferences, reach out to colleagues you may have across the globe and encourage them to attend.

ASLO welcomes new opportunities to advance aquatic sciences across the globe.

This is my last President's Message. It has been a busy 2 years, and I thank the ASLO community for entrusting me with this responsibility. While dominated by business office and other administrative transitions, these years have been an honor and a privilege in a multitude of ways. We have worked on advancing publication open access, while ensuring the financial stability of ASLO. We have worked hard to not only ensure consideration of, but to improve, diversity and inclusivity in all that ASLO does. Training, new activities, and enhanced support for students and early career investigators and global outreach awardees are just some of these efforts (e.g., Maranger 2021a,b; Meinikmann et al. 2022; Cuker and Davis 2023; Meyer-Gutbrod et al. 2023). ASLO has celebrated amazing, accomplished awardees (and see https://www.aslo.org/announcing-the-2024-aslo-award-winners/ for full descriptions of ASLO's 2024 awardees!). Our new forthcoming strategic plan will reflect these priorities and forge the path ahead. You will hear more about that plan in the months ahead.

I thank the very capable staff of ASLO, including Teresa Curto, Chris Schneider, Brittany Schieler, and Fenina Buttler for the daily work of administration and communication. Collectively we thank Paul Kemp for his many years of dedicated service to ASLO in multiple capacities. The compassionate and dedicated service of Helen Schneider Lemay has guided ASLO through conferences and business management for three decades and we cannot thank her enough. We also thank Mik Bauer and the new team at Bostrom for making a smooth transition to a new era of association management. The ASLO board members have helped to guide the ship as we have faced headwinds and tailwinds and I extend a heartfelt thanks to them. Our many committee members have served important roles in advancing ASLO purpose. Our editors-in-chief, deputy editors, and associate editors set the bar high for our journals. They are enhancing our global reach and, with each issue, working with authors in advancing aquatic sciences across the globe. Our partners at Wiley provide the professional publication service that makes our journals shine.

Roxane Maranger, immediate past president, was a fearless leader and dear friend and advisor as I transitioned into my role as president. Dianne Greenfield has served the important and difficult role as secretary and holds the history of our many deliberations. Michelle McCrackin stepped in as our treasurer during the time of administrative transition, making her job ever more difficult. I appreciate the dedication and efforts of these women tremendously. I thank our board members who are leaving after a successful term of dedicated service, Amina Pollard and Ajit Subramaniam, and I continue to appreciate the efforts of those board members whose service continues. I am pleased to turn the reins to Susanne Mender-Deuer as ASLO's new president, and I welcome the new board members who will work with her as she forges her path for ASLO.

ASLO is global. Embrace the path of advancing the sciences of limnology and oceanography across the globe. The global climate needs are many and together we can make a difference. Thank you for your continued support and engagement with ASLO.