“Shocked and honored” was the reaction by UO scientist Josh Roering when he learned of his election as a 2018 fellow of the American Geophysical Union.
Roering, a professor in the Department of Earth Sciences and a faculty member in the Environmental Studies Program, focuses on landscape evolution and Earth surface processes. He will be among 62 newly elected fellows from 21 countries who will be recognized Dec. 12 at the organization’s annual fall meeting in Washington, D.C.
The American Geophysical Union has chosen new fellows each year since 1962 from no more than 0.01 percent of its total membership. Fellows are recognized for their scientific contributions and prominence in their respective fields of earth and space sciences.
“I'm incredibly shocked and honored, and fairly incredulous,” said Roering, whose research has unveiled a lot about how landscapes are shaped by landslides, fire and climate change. “Most generally, this recognition is only possible because of the talented students, postdocs and collaborators that I've been fortunate to meet and work with over the years.”
Many of his most-successful and rewarding research encounters, he said, have been with scientists outside of his own discipline.
“I've never been afraid to ask lots of questions of my fellow scientists, and this incessant prodding has often resulted in me and my research lab members becoming engaged in highly diverse methods, projects and field areas,” Roering said. “Fortunately, my students and postdocs have been willing and eager to follow these new and different paths of inquiry despite significant uncertainty in the potential outcome.”
Such interdisciplinary work has led to many new discoveries in earth sciences, he added.
“For a hundred years the American Geophysical Union has facilitated key discoveries that span from the Earth's core to outer space,” he said. “My recognition by this organization is a tremendous honor.”
The American Geophysical Union is a not-for-profit professional scientific organization representing nearly 62,000 members in 139 countries.
Previous UO researchers elected as fellows were Eugene Humphreys, in 2003 in recognition of his work in plate tectonics, and Katharine Cashman, in 2009 for her contributions to volcanology. Cashman is now at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom.
Joe Dufek, who joined the UO’s Volcanology Cluster of Excellence this year, was selected as a fellow in 2012 while at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
The full list of new fellows is available in available in the organization’s announcement of the 2018 fellows.
—By Jim Barlow, University Communications