ESIP News Vol. 1, Number 3
Sun, 2010-01-31 10:23
ESIP NEWS
Newsletter of the ESIP Federation
Issue no. 3 Contents
From the Executive Committee
From the Front Office
Knoxville Summer 2010
ESIP Winter Meeting
Around the Federation
Grant Opportunities
Other Opportunities
ESIP Member Calendar
From the Executive Committee
“Snowmageddon.” “Blizzard of the Century.” Regardless of the headlines it seems like this year’s El Niño-inspired winter weather has made itself known across the US and elsewhere so it’s probably hard to be thinking about shorts, t-shirts and a summer meeting in July, but here goes.
The 2010 ESIP Federation summer meeting is scheduled for July 20 – 23 in Knoxville, TN. That’s right, Tennessee! Planning is ramping up for the meeting and the program will be a good one. The meeting will take place in downtown Knoxville, a short ride from McGhee Tyson airport, and is co-hosted by the ORNL DAAC and the University of Tennessee School of Information Science.
While you’re in town plan on taking advantage of activities in the local area, the GreatSmokeyMountainsNational Park, Smokies minor league baseball are nearby, not to mention Dollywood.
Looking forward to seeing you in July.
Sincerely,
Chris Lenhardt, ESIP Vice President
From the Front Office
Reminders
The Newsletter is a great way to get out the news about your organization. The newsletter is published bimonthly, February, April, June, August, October and December. Any submission by the beginning of the month is welcome.
The ESIP Federation master calendar is a way to keep up with the latest meetings, telecons and their call in numbers, and other news of interest. If there are meetings which should be posted or other events of importance to ESIP members, please be sure to send that information to Brian Rogan, Director of Partnership and Communication. Our future plans include member logins and the capability to add to the calendar. Access the calendar at [insert link]
ESIP Winter Meeting
The 2010 Winter ESIP Federation Meeting in Washington, DC concluded on January 7, a resounding success. Over three days, more than 180 attendees from numerous federal agencies, projects, non-profit organizations and interested individuals participated in five tracks devoted to Environmental Decision making, Water, Air Quality, Data Preservation/Stewardship and Climate Literacy. In addition, several plenary speakers and panels spoke to the theme of Environmental Decision Making including:
§ A Federal Agency Panel on Science Supporting Decision Making - Pai-Yei Whung, EPA Chief Scientist, Mike Freilich, Earth Science Division Director,NASA, Mary Kicza,NOAA/NESDIS Assistant Administrator, Bryant Cramer, USGS Associate Director for Geography
§ A Decision Maker Panel from the Field: National - Regional - Local - Panelists: Pamela Whitney, US House Science and Technology Committee; Caitlin Simpson, NOAA RISA Program; Roy Rasmussen, NCAR Research Applications Lab; Brad Quayle, US Forest Service, Remote Sensing Applications Center; Linda Mearns, Institute for the Study of Society and the Environment, NCAR Center; Linda Mearns, Institute for the Study of Society and the Environment, NCAR.
§ A lunch talk by Sheril Kirshenbaum, co-author of “Unscientific America: How scientific illiteracy threatens our future”
§ Jake F. Weltzin, Executive Director, USA National Phenology Network (USGS)
§ Rich Engel, Director, Climate Change and State Stability Program, Office of the Director of National Intelligence
Presentations from the Winter meeting are at www.esipfed.org/meetings/. The next ESIP meeting will be the 2010 Summer Mfeeting in Knoxville, TNJuly 20-23, 2010 co-hosted by ORNL and the University of Tennessee.
Around the Federation
ESIP Federation Elects New Leadership
The Federation elected a new slate of officers during its meeting in Washington, DC. The new officers will serve one-year terms, through the end of the 2011 Winter Conference.
The Federation’s President is Dr. James Frew of the BrenSchool at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Dr. Frew was elected to serve his second term as President and will preside over the ESIP Federation’s Assembly and its Executive Committee. President Frew, who has previously served as the ESIP Federation’s Vice President, described his vision for the ESIP Federation. “The ESIP Federation is a dynamic organization that is responsive to its community’s vision for data proliferation and technology implementation. During the past year, the ESIP Federation has seen its membership ranks grow and has begun to increase its visibility internationally. With a growing community of 115 partners, and with multi-agency support and participation, the ESIP Federation is working toward building bridges across many consumers of environmental information representing both professional and lay communities.
The ESIP Federation’s leadership is diverse, coming from government, academic, and private sectors. All officers and committee chairs will serve one-year terms on the ESIP Federation’s Executive Committee. Each will be involved in policy development and planning for the ESIP Federation. New officers include (those marked with an asterisk (*) also serve on the Foundation for Earth Science Board):
President*, James Frew, BrenSchool, University of California, Santa Barbara
Vice President*, Chris Lenhardt, Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Type I Representative*, Marilyn Kaminski*, National Snow and IceDataCenter
Type II Representative*, Peter Fox, Tetherless World Constellation, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Type III Representative*, Karl Benedict, EarthDataAnalysisCenter, University of New Mexico
Committees:
Chair of Constitution and Bylaws, Michael Goodman, NASA Marshall
Chair of Finance & Appropriations*, Charles Hutchinson, University of Arizona
Chair of Partnership, Annette Schloss, University of New Hampshire
Chair of Education, Margaret Mooney, Space Science and EngineeringCenter, University of Wisconsin
Chair of Information Technology and Interoperability, Rahul Ramachandran, University of Alabama in Huntsville
Chair of Products and Services, Robert Raskin, Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Bruce Caron Receives Martha Maiden Award
Long time ESIP partner, Dr. Bruce Caron, of The New Media Studio, was awarded the Martha Maiden Award after a vote by fellow ESIP partners. The award was presented at the Winter Meeting. Bruce was introduced by Dr. Patricia Reiff of RiceUniversity, who nominated him for the award. In Bruce’s words:
"I'm greatly honored by this tribute. I've had the privilege to work with and for a community of people who are dedicating their careers to addressing the problems and finding the solutions for using earth data resources in order to sustain the planet. I'm very happy to have been of some service to this effort. And I look forward to the ESIP Federation growing as a key venue for this community."
Bruce joined the ESIP Federation through the awarding of one of the initial ESIP grants by NASA to the company he worked for "Planet Earth Science". This organization was an ApplicationCenter (Type III) partner focused on developing educational applications of Earth science data and technology. While "Planet Earth Science" decreased its involvement in the ESIP Federation as it funding ended, Bruce continued his involvement through his new non-profit company, The New Media Studio. Bruce was elected President of the ESIP Federation in 2001, which was the first time that a champion of education held a strong leadership role. As Federation President, Bruce supported efforts to amend the by-laws to establish a new committee for education and was instrumental in establishing the Foundation for Earth Science.
This award is named for Martha E. Maiden, NASA Program Executive for Earth Data Systems. Ms. Maiden is widely credited for nurturing the ESIP Federation in its infancy and has overseen its growth and maturity. This award is presented on a regular basis, but not less than one time each year. In honor of her leadership, dedication and tireless efforts to nurture the ESIP Federation into a vibrant and mature organization, this award was established in 2009 to recognize outstanding service to the Earth science information community. This award honors individuals who have demonstrated leadership, dedication and a collaborative spirit in advancing the field of Earth Science information.
Nominations for this award are accepted on a rolling basis. To be considered for the January meeting, a complete nomination package (in pdf format) is due by October 31 of the preceding year. It can be emailed to the Executive Director, Carol Meyer at carolbmeyer@esipfed.org. Specifics on the nomination process can be found online at http://wiki.esipfed.org/index.php/Martha_Maiden_Award
Climate Literacy Network highlights
The Climate Literacy Network (CLN) is a diverse group of approximately 40 stakeholders interested in the implementation and adoption of the principles of climate literacy throughout society. Organized and maintained by TERC, an ESIP partner, this nationally-representative group meets virtually once per week to share information on climate science and climate literacy. CLN’s activities include a sharp focus on educational contexts (formal and informal), but also include important discussions on policy decisions, impact in community groups, and ordinary citizens. Achievements of CLN and its members since January 2008 include:
1. Creation of Essential Principles of Climate Science
2. Acceptance of Essential Principles by 13 Federal agencies and 24 educational institutions
3. Winning grant awards from the National Science Foundation and NASA
4. Working with 12 states to implement the Essential Principles concepts
5. Having a policy document accepted by President Obama’s Seat at the Table website
6. Having a policy document accepted by the America’s Climate Choice panels
7. Creation of an interactive climate literacy website for teachers, students and the public. http://climateliteracynow.org
The Climate Literacy network hosted a track on Climate Literacy and Education at the ESIP winter meeting, partnering with the Education Committee. The track included speakers, presentations and discussion within the theme of Environmental Decision Making. The audience was a diverse mixture of long time ESIP partners, climate education stakeholders and members of the education community.
NSTA
ESIP Federation will be present at the upcoming National Science Teachers Association meeting (dates, location). Stop by Partner booth (insert #) to see what other ESIP Federation partners are doing in the education realm. Or, if you would like to have your product featured at the booth, please contact Brian Rogan.
As part of its ongoing service to membership, ESIP publishes a semi-annual compendium of grant opportunities that is available at the Winter and Summer meetings. In addition, a monthly update of new solicitations is compiled in an evolving document. Both of these documents are available at http://wiki.esipfed.org/index.php/Main_Page under Member Services. In each newsletter issue, we highlight any grant opportunity that might appeal to the broadest spectrum of our membership. If you hear of any opportunity that may be of interest to our membership and is not listed, please feel free to send the information to the editor.
Environmental Literacy Grants for
Informal/Nonformal Science Education
Funding Opportunity Number: NOAA-SEC-OED-2010-2002248
Due Date for Applications: April 6, 2010
Expected Total Number of Awards: 10
Estimated Total Program Funding: $7,500,000
Award Ceiling: $1,250,000
Award Floor: $500,000
URL:
Overview:
The goal of this funding opportunity is to support projects that engage the public in educational activities that utilize emerging and/or advanced technologies and leverage NOAA assets to improve understanding, and stewardship of the local and global environment. There is specific interest in projects that use emerging and/or advanced technologies to (1) facilitate outdoor experiences involving scientific inquiry and exploration of the natural world apart from formal K-12 curricula and (2) visualize, display, and interpret data to improve understanding and provide a systems perspective of Earth's dynamic processes. This program has two priorities. Priority 1 is for large-scale projects that occur over a longer duration with regional to national implementation. Priority 2 is for small-scale projects that occur over a shorter duration with local to regional implementation. Funded projects will be between one and five years in duration. This program meets NOAA's Mission Support goal to provide critical support for NOAA's mission. It is anticipated that awards under this announcement will be made by September 30, 2010 and that projects funded under this announcement will have a start date no earlier than October 1, 2010. Note: a PDF version of this announcement is available at ttp://www.oesd.noaa.gov/funding_opps.html.
Contacts:
Rosalie Vega
Grants Management Specialist
Phone 301-713-0922
Grants Management Specialist
Phone 301-713-0922
RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES IN SPACE AND EARTH SCIENCES - 2010
Funding Opportunity Number: NNH10ZDA001N
Due Date for Applications: Notice of Intent to propose Due: March 15, 2010 through February 9, 2011 Proposals Due: April 30, 2010 through April 30, 2011
Expected Total Number of Awards:
Estimated Total Program Funding:
Award Ceiling:
Award Floor:
Overview:
NNH10ZDA001N Release Date: February 12, 2010 Notice of Intent to propose Due: March 15, 2010 through February 9, 2011 Proposals Due: April 30, 2010 through April 30, 2011 RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES IN SPACE AND EARTH SCIENCES (ROSES) 2010 NNH10ZDA001N, entitled "Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences - 2010 (ROSES-2010)," will be available on or about February 12, 2010, by opening the NASA Research Opportunities homepage at http://nspires.nasaprs.com/ and then linking through the menu listings "Solicitations" to "Open Solicitations." This NASA Research Announcement (NRA) solicits proposals for supporting basic and applied research and technology across a broad range of Earth and space science program elements relevant to one or more of the following NASA Research Programs: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Planetary Science, and Astrophysics. This ROSES NRA covers all aspects of basic and applied supporting research and technology in space and Earth sciences, including, but not limited to: theory, modeling, and analysis of SMD science data; aircraft, stratospheric balloon, suborbital rocket, and commercial reusable rocket investigations; development of experiment techniques suitable for future SMD space missions; development of concepts for future SMD space missions; development of advanced technologies relevant to SMD missions; development of techniques for and the laboratory analysis of both extraterrestrial samples returned by spacecraft, as well as terrestrial samples that support or otherwise help verify observations from SMD Earth system science missions; determination of atomic and composition parameters needed to analyze space data, as well as returned samples from the Earth or space; Earth surface observations and field campaigns that support SMD science missions; development of integrated Earth system models; development of systems for applying Earth science research data to societal needs; and development of applied information systems applicable to SMD objectives and data. Awards range from under $100K per year for focused, limited efforts (e.g., data analysis) to more than $1M per year for extensive activities (e.g., development of science experiment hardware). The funds available for awards in each program element offered in this ROSES NRA range from less than one to several million dollars, which allow selection from a few to as many as several dozen proposals depending on the program objectives and the submission of proposals of merit. Awards will be made as grants, cooperative agreements, contracts, and inter- or intra-agency transfers depending on the nature of the proposing organization and/or program requirements. The typical period of performance for an award is four years, although a few programs may specify shorter or longer (maximum of five years) periods. Organizations of every type, domestic and foreign, Government and private, for profit and not-for-profit, may submit proposals without restriction on number or teaming arrangements. Note that it is NASA policy that all investigations involving non-U.S. organizations will be conducted on the basis of no exchange of funds. Proposal due dates are scheduled starting on April 30, 2010, and continue through April 30, 2011. Electronically submitted Notices of Intent to propose are requested for most program elements, with the first such due date being March 15, 2010. Electronic submission of proposals is required by the respective due dates for each program element and must be submitted by an authorized official of the proposing organization. Electronic proposals may be submitted via the NASA proposal data system NSPIRES or via Grants.gov. Every organization that intends to submit a proposal in response to this ROSES NRA must be registered with NSPIRES; organizations that intend to submit proposals via Grants.gov must be registered with Grants.gov in addition to being registered with NSPIRES. Such registration must identify the authorized organizational representative(s) who will submit the electronic proposal. All principal investigators and other participants (e.g. co-investigators) must be registered in NSPIRES regardless of submission system. Potential proposers and proposing organizations are urged to access the system(s) well in advance of the proposal due date(s) of interest to familiarize themselves with its structure and enter the requested information. Details of the solicited programs are given in the Appendices of this ROSES NRA. Proposal due dates are given in Tables 2 and 3 of this ROSES NRA. Interested proposers should monitor http://nspires.nasaprs.com/ or subscribe to the electronic notification system there for additional new programs or amendments to this ROSES NRA through February 2011, at which time release of a subsequent ROSES NRA is planned. A web archive (and RSS feed) for amendments, clarifications, and corrections to this ROSES NRA can be found at: http://nasascience.nasa.gov/researchers/sara/grant-solicitations/roses-2... .
Further information about specific program elements may be obtained from the individual Program Officers listed in the Summary of Key Information for each program element in the Appendices of this ROSES NRA, while questions concerning general ROSES NRA policies and procedures may be directed to Dr. Max Bernstein, Lead for Research, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546-0001; E-mail: sara@nasa.gov; Telephone: 202-358-0879.
Contacts:
Dr. Max Bernstein, Lead for Research, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546-0001; E-mail: sara@nasa.gov; Telephone: 202-358-0879.
Other Opportunities
Earth Resources Technologies, Inc. has two current openings:
Sr. Data Storage Administrator – Silver Spring, MD
Job Description
Will be responsible for day-to-day operations, support, design, and implementation of the fiber and copper data storage environments supporting upward of 2200 users and 3500 computers. Will be part of an infrastructure operations team, and will report to the Manager of Infrastructure Operations. Will be expected to:
· Consolidate isolated storage environments into an enterprise storage solution.
· Perform technical troubleshooting and issue resolution.
· Validate, test, monitor, and tune performance of storage hardware and software, including a periodic log review.
· Install patches, updates of storage microcode, firmware, hardware, and software.
· Configure, perform, and monitor data replication and migrations using various replication tools.
· Demonstrate knowledge of process (incident management, problem management, root cause analysis, change management).
· Ensure compliance with operational standards, processes, and service objectives in support of infrastructure systems, and integrate all changes within an established change control process.
· Provide technical requirements to plan for and implement additional storage.
· Continuously review and improve upon the proactive capacity planning and monitoring processes deployed within the Storage & Backup environment.
· Continuously provide value by recommending and evaluating any “new” technology and best practices that might enable the success of the IT Infrastructure.
· Interface with other Systems Administrators (Application Admins, DBAs, Network Admin, Storage Admin, OS Admin).
· Maintain a working relationship with Storage Vendors Technical Support teams and interface with them as applicable.
· May need to perform after-hours/weekend work and swing shifts during migrations.
Required Skills
5+ years experience administering and supporting an enterprise class multi-tier storage environment, leveraging NetApp or similar technologies. Must be an innovative team player with strong analytical, problem-solving, and interpersonal skills; have excellent organization, communication, and follow-through skills; and effectively handle multiple concurrent assignments. As a minimum, should also have the following technical skills:
· Knowledge or experience with NetApp “Snap” production such as SnapManager, SnapVault, etc.
· Strong hands-on experience administering and supporting an enterprise class NetBackup solution, leveraging both virtual and encrypted tape within a copper and fiber based backup model.
· Knowledgeable in NetBackup 6.5+, Deduplication, Storage provisioning, Fabric zoning, Data ONTap 7.x, and NetApp Operations Manager.
· Familiarity with the Windows, Macintosh, Unix/Linux operating environments, Volume management, Qlogic or Emulex HBA drivers, and Multipathing software.
· Knowledgeable in industry best practices and trends in the Storage & Backup space.
· Experience planning and implementing multiple projects.
Preferred skills include:
· Knowledge of working in or maintaining a NetApp MetroClustering environment.
· Familiarity with various virtualization and replication technologies such as Cisco VLANs, VTL, Netapp Snap mirror/ snapshot, and Multistore Virtual Filer.
· ITIL V3 Foundations certification.
Education
BA/BS in Computer Science, related field, or equivalent.
Scientific Data Manager/Analyst – Silver Spring, MD
Position Description
The NationalOceanographicDataCenter seeks a highly qualified individual to develop a comprehensive Data Management Plan (DMP) for the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP). The CRCP DMP will identify current gaps in data policies and practices; identify and document best practices for moving CRCP-funded data and information through the life cycle of data and identify the roles and responsibilities of principal investigators and data managers for managing irreplaceable ecosystems observation data. The CRCP DMP will build on established data management directives and other existing efforts to effectively manage diverse ecosystems-oriented observation data and information products.
Required Skills
2 + years experience analyzing and documenting data management requirements and processes/policies. Must be highly organized and process-driven and be able to manage multiple tasks with associated deadlines. Must be able to communicate effectively with a diverse group of scientists and data managers. Advanced study or experience in digital library studies, informatics, or process analysis is desired.
Education
B.S in biological, earth/ocean, or environmental sciences, related discipline, or equivalent.
For both positions, Submit resume to ERT’s Career Opportunities Web Page at: http://tbe.taleo.net/NA8/ats/careers/searchResults.jsp?org=ERT&cws=1 other positions can be found at this link as well.
Earth Resources Technology, Inc. (ERT)
ERT is an equal opportunity employer.
ESIP Calendar
The Federation maintains an active calendar of telecons, meetings and other events on it’s website at the following link. Notices of relevant meetings, webinars and conferences are more than welcome. The information can be sent to editor for posting on the calendar. The calendar can be found by clicking here.
NSTA National Meeting – Philadelphia, PA March 17-20, 2010
ESIP Summer Meeting – Knoxville, TN July 20-23, 2010