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"Future Directions in Tectonics" – White Paper
It has been over a decade since the Tectonics community generated a White Paper articulating
the long-term vision and goals of the Tectonics Community in its broadest sense. A small
organizing committee committee formed over the summer, with the goal of engaging in the
community building process of writing a White Paper. A process has been outlined (below) to
promote inclusiveness and maximize participation. Funds haven't been committed yet and
activities are still in the planning stages, but we want to alert the community of this plan and
encourage participation. The White Paper will articulate the long-term vision and goals of the
Tectonics Community in its broadest sense. Defining future research and educational directions
(and needs) in Tectonics will allow us to articulate the relevance of our science, providing a solid
outline of our contributions to society. Most critically, it will justify the support needed to sustain
or increase productivity, and facilitate communication with funding agencies (for example, NSF),
policy makers, and university administrators at all levels. In doing so, it can communicate not
only the goals, but also the needs of the community moving forward - including research
facilities, (cyber)infrastructure, and human resources - and identify obstacles and bottlenecks in
our work flow. Finally, it will help us build a stronger community. Meeting these goals will
provide our representatives within funding agencies with the information they need to justify
allocation of funds for future research in the broad area of Tectonics.
The process
The goal is an open and transparent process where any interested individuals or groups may
participate at any time. The approach follows three steps:
1. An Organizing Committee, consisting of three faculty (Basil Tikoff, Yvette Kuiper,
Laurel Goodwin) initiates the process, obtains funding for a workshop, and recruits a
Workshop Committee.
2. The Workshop Committee organizes a workshop where input from participants is
solicited in order to outline the most compelling and broadly supported future directions
of Tectonics. The workshop will be held late in the summer of 2015 in a location TBD.
We anticipate a workshop with 50-70 participants. The goals of the Workshop
Committee are to provide a structure for constructive and focused discussion, and to run
the Summer 2015 workshop.
3. At the workshop, a Writing Committee will form to write the White Paper (to be
completed by Late Spring 2016), based on directions outlined during the workshop.
Input from the community will be sought in a variety of ways for those who cannot
make it to the workshop. These will include (but are not limited to) follow-up webinars,
town-hall-type sessions at GSA and AGU, and an iterative online process for writing the
document where comments can be made and edits suggested.
How can you participate?
There are several ways to participate:
1. Either nominate someone or self-nominate to be part of the Workshop Committee. For
nominations and/or general inquiries, please visit:
http://geoscience.wisc.edu/geoscience/people/faculty/laurel-goodwin/future-directions-in-tectonics-workshop/
2. Attend the Summer 2015 Workshop. The tentative date for the workshop is the week of
July 20. Details will be forthcoming from the Workshop Committee.
3. Volunteer to serve on the Writing Committee and/or provide feedback on the written
document.
Basil Tikoff, Yvette Kuiper, Laurel Goodwin