After a decade of existence and service in organizing conferences, training courses and other societal development programs, the society is standing at a critical juncture for the following reasons.
PORSEC has depended too much on individual efforts for mobilizng necessary funding for organizing conferences, training and other administrative expenditure.
Though PORSEC has developed to the status of a full fledged society in the field of ocean remote sensing, it has not yet received ICSU recognition, either as a scientific union or as an associate, which is very important for any society that is serious about societal problems and environmental concerns.
Considering the first case (funding), as you know, the present executives (myself, Tony Liu, R.A. Brown, Kristina Katsaros, and others including the LOC bodies) so far have put efforts in mobilizing funds from NASA, NASDA, NOAA, ONR, ESA, etc.
In the future, as the executive individuals changes, we cannot assure such efforts and fund flows. This may affect PORSEC and even the existence of the society.
For this reason, we have been thinking about various options and most of the executive members are of the opinion that we should collect membership charges (individual, associate, etc.). Because this will guarantee the threshold funding required for PORSEC to exist and organize various scientific and societal programs along with the varying sponsorship supports.
Regarding PORSEC becoming scientific union member or associate of ICSU, it is important for us to ensure that the hard work we put in nurturing the society for the last ten years has gained its due for the benefits of the future ocean remote sensing programs and for the society.
Therefore, it is very important to get the PORSEC society registered as an associate/union. The ICSU associate/union status will help greatly the LOC and the members in getting fund from government agencies to ensure its full fledged functioning as a society.
[ Yasuhiro Sugimori]
Memo
To: The SOC
From: R.A. Brown, Tony Liu, Ian S F Jones
Subject: Thoughts on PORSEC's Future
Ten years of PORSEC. It has been a very nice association. We have met some great people, gotten exposed to fascinating cultural differences, seen the Eastern world (plus Australia and that exotic place, Victoria, BC).
Then there is the feeling that something was being accomplished. The goals included engaging and improving the science capabilities of developing nations and contributing to a global data set that will help address global and regional pollution problems. We have made progress in both of these goals. The USA contingent was embarrassed to be 6% of the world's population that by dint of lucky birthplace has over half of the world's wealth. In science, we have the overwhelming amount of research money spent in the USA. As a result, we have gotten to do much in the world of observational science.
PORSEC offered the opportunity to share the bounty in science. The new field of satellite remote sensing provided a unique chance to offer exciting, new, global data to countries that could not afford the huge costs of putting up satellites. Free. We have participated in a few NASA satellite sensor groups that have voted to make the data available immediately, to everyone. We have set up web sites that provide global data to anyone who wants it. The point is --- this is revolutionary data. Mainstream, entrenched and prosaic organizations in the USA and Europe cannot use these data any better than an enterprising, open-minded scientist in any country in the world. PORSEC was perfectly timed to capitalize on this unprecedented opportunity.
PORSEC is Prof. Sugimori's brainchild. He enlisted a famous oceanographer who supported the same goals, Robert Stewart, to be president and they worked to create the SOC and every other detail that made PORSEC work so well. The initial SOC represented the Pacific Rim nations well, with only a token representation from the USA (in '96 there were only four). Sugimori naturally took the presidency after Stewart and has continued his extraordinary work to keep PORSEC going. As you who attended the last SOC meeting know, this included a dominant, affable, creative style that accomplished the goals that Prof. Sugimori sought. These always included the survival of PORSEC. Now, as PORSEC faces his retirement in two years, a path divides in the road ahead. It is important to note that his tireless work at obtaining funding and planning has sustained PORSEC so far. When he retires, it is fair to assume that he will also retire from these duties. As the president, the treasurer and the publications chair all end their terms in their respective offices, PORSEC must address the future in the elections of 2002. There will be new ideas, perhaps a change in direction. This memo expresses our current ideas on this change.
PORSEC was birthed as a Pacific Rim, plus the adjoint Indian Ocean, developing nations support group. This has been crucial to its success, and worked very well. PORSEC's strength has been in its constituency. It's leadership and majority of SOC have been from the Pacific/Indian Ocean community with emphasis on helping developing nations get their science strong. As such, it is a unique organization. This character may change with the influx of the new majority of North Americans. They are experienced, confident and forceful in meetings by dint of their lifetime educational and financial security (It is just the luck of the draw, but it is a fact of life). They usually have good abilities in the English language, often have good training in politics and suffer the usual ambitions of the powerful. When they are in an organization they tend to dominate. Despite feelings that PORSEC should remain as free of USA dominance as possible, Brown took the publications chair office because someone from USA would have more experience with English language publications and we had already used up the Australians. He feels some guilt about introducing more USA scientists to PORSEC in the process of getting editors and reviewers for the PORSEC publications. We share this trepidation because we are not certain that the Americanization of PORSEC is healthy for PORSEC for the following reasons (Although, as with most things, it could be good if it is accompanied by a large influx of funding, which overcomes philosophy differences):
1. PORSEC has survived as a special organization in what it does. The emphasis on developing nations' science and leadership from non-USA countries has been its strength. Meetings have been mainly comprised of local, developing nations' scientists, as have publication submissions. This has changed as more North American scientists have become involved. We have confronted the dichotomy between experienced publications-wise authors and less experienced scientists in the publication of PORSEC books. The difference is significant and requires a delicate handling (e.g. the evolution of reviews of PORSEC books ranges from criticism of the quality of the papers to appreciation and empathy for the goals). All participants have been able to place something in the proceedings while those with important message have had their paper massaged and reviewed to bring it up to international standard so it could be placed in the post-conference volumes.
2. The field of remote sensing is growing explosively. The list of organizations that sponsor meetings dedicated to remote sensing is large and expanding. These are big and powerful organizations, IEEE, IGARS, HDGEC, SPIE, IAG, EGS, IUGG, AMS, EGS, EOS/SPIE, etc. There are so many that a scientist cannot attend them all and there will undoubtedly be some reduction in number. There is tremendous competition for quality papers and travel funds. The developing nations can only form weak niches in these organizations. Without a unique appeal PORSEC will have difficulty surviving in this pool.
3. The availability of some travel funds for PORSEC may be impacted if it becomes too Americanized. There exist dedicated funds that are specifically for developing nations that have been tapped (by Anthony Liu for the 3 meetings up to 2002). These funds would probably not be available to a US organization. Alternate funding will have to be found.
These points are speculative and provocative --- meant to stimulate dialog on this subject. Please respond on e-mail. To suggest some points for discussion, consider:
1.To reduce the "capture" of PORSEC by any national group it may be necessary to limit the number of SOC members from any one country to 10% of the total.
2. The SOC might rethink the change in name from Pacific to Pan. Refocusing the Association back to the Pacific where there are many developing countries may keep the early spirit of PORSEC alive.
3. The Elections Committee should interview and establish the funding ideas and abilities of candidates for all offices. It should then develop a slate of candidates.
The purpose of this memo is to open dialog before the next SOC meeting to obtain a well thought out strategy to maintaining the POSEC that we have all worked towards.