June 2021 OES Beacon OES Beacon

From the President (June 2021)

Christopher Whitt, OES President

There is so much happening in your society in 2021! You’ll find this issue of the Beacon full of new activities at both the society level and from our chapters around the world.

First, we are eagerly anticipating connecting with you again (both virtually and in person) at Global OCEANS 2021 San Diego – Porto in September[1]. There will be a full in-person program of activities to reconnect with colleagues in San Diego. In addition, there is a full virtual program so that you can present and attend even if you are not able to join us in person.

The next OCEANS in Chennai, India, is just around the corner in February 2022. Expect to hear more about future OCEANS conferences in the coming months.

OES is proud to be a partner with the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development[2]. The Ocean Decade is a global movement to bring together scientists, engineers, policy makers and funders to achieve “the science we need for the ocean we want” over the decade 2021-30. We all know how important the ocean is to every aspect of life on earth; the Ocean Decade is a challenge for us all to both communicate that message to the rest of society, and to work together to enhance our ability to understand and sustainably manage all aspects of the ocean.

OES is participating in many Ocean Decade activities, including regional summits and workshops, early career ocean professionals’ meetings, as well as highlighting the Ocean Decade at our own OCEANS conferences and other meetings. Contact me if you have ideas for how the Society can support the goals of the Ocean Decade.

Along the theme of more coordination among ocean science and technology communities, it is exciting to announce that we have partnered with the organizers of Ocean Sciences Meeting. This means that there will be several OES-organized technical sessions, and you will be able to access a member registration rate should you be able to join us in Honolulu in February of 2022(URL: https://www.aslo.org/osm2022/)

It is hard to believe we are already half-way through 2021. That means it is time to elect your representatives on the Administrative Committee of OES for 2022-24. The election is open until 29 June 2021. If you are a voting member you should have received your IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society ballot material electronically by email on or about 18 May 2021 from ieee-oevote@ieee.org.

Finally, in this issue of the Beacon, we sadly commemorate the passing of Dr. Ferial El-Hawary. Dr. El-Hawary was a passionate, long-serving volunteer with OES and IEEE. She will be dearly missed.

I hope you are staying safe as we continue to navigate the challenges of the pandemic. We look forward to connecting with you soon, as we keep working to bring together the ocean engineering, science, and technology communities.

[1] https://global21.oceansconference.org/

[2] https://www.oceandecade.org/