2024 Dr. Keith Seitter Roundtable

The 2024 AMS Washington Forum and the 2024 Dr. Keith Seitter Roundtable will take place at the NOAA Center for Weather and Climate Prediction (NCWCP) located at 5830 University Research Ct. College Park, MD.

The 2024 Dr. Keith Seitter Roundtable on the Role of Societies in the Scientific Enterprise will focus on the role that scientific societies can play in shaping the future direction of the scientific enterprise. 

Scientific societies can convene high-level strategic discussions; develop shared understanding of challenges and opportunities; provide neutral venues for airing of differences; help establish relationships with key external partners; and contribute to the vision for the future of science and services and the pathways to getting us to that future.

Currently, the AMS Policy Program has two ongoing studies focused on ensuring that the enterprise thrives during the extended period of rapid and disruptive change that is impacting all aspects of science, professional life, and the broader society that we serve. This disruptive change creates tremendous opportunity for scientific advancement and the application of science for societal benefit.

The weather enterprise study is a two year effort being conducted in partnership with the Commission on the Weather, Water, and Climate Enterprise and will be the focus of the 2024 AMS Summer Community Meeting, which will occur on August 5-6 in Washington, DC.

The climate enterprise initiative is a five year community-wide effort to develop and begin the initial implementation of a strategic framework to enable the climate enterprise over the next decade and beyond. The project is made possible, in part, through a grant from NASA. 

We are including two initial questions to help tee up (but not constrain!) the discussion: 

Q1: How can the approaches for advancing the weather and climate enterprise(s) be enhanced or improved?

Q2: What additional areas of focus might AMS be proactive in seeking to address for the success of our enterprise in the next decade and beyond? 

Q3: What are the other questions that we should be asking the community?

We welcome and encourage innovative ideas from everyone!

About the Keith Seitter Roundtable Series

The Roundtable on the Role of Societies in the Scientific Enterprise was established with two purposes: 1) to enable the development and sharing of innovative ideas for the advancement of science and the benefits of science to the public, and 2) to honor Dr. Keith Seitter's commitment and ongoing service to the AMS community and the broader public. 

The Roundtable offers a yearly opportunity to brainstorm and discuss provocative ideas and approaches for ways societies might better support the scientific community or help the public better understand science. The themes we focus on will change each year but will always be aimed at providing new ways to think about our changing world and the role scientific societies play in it.