[Board] Update: MOU with AGU / Open Geosciene Committee

["Peter Löwe"]

Dear Board, (cc: OpengeoScience Committee)

this is a follow up for the previous mail (see below) concerning a MOU with the American Geoscience Union.

On Tuesday Dec 5th, I was able to talked to a AGU staff member, Brooks Hanson (AGU Senior Vice President, Publications) (https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6230-7145) about the mission OSGeo and the win-win potential of a MOU. AGU is interested to establish a working relation with OSGeo. However, they need more information about us to determine whether from their perspective a MOU is the most effective way to proceed. Since all AGU staff is already occupied with next weeks AGU General Assembly (major event), Brooks has requested more information by e-mail before the holiday season, to continue the dialogue in early 2018 with the option to sign a MOU during the European Geoscience Union (EGU) General Assembly in April in Vienna (https://www.egu2018.eu/).

If the board agrees, I'll draft a note for AGU within the next days (available for comments by the board in the OSGeo-wiki).

I also propose that the board goes ahead with the "vice-presidenting" of the chairs of the open geoscience committee (https://wiki.osgeo.org/wiki/Open_Geoscience_Committee), as AGU might have a knack for hierarchies/roles/titles, etc.

FWIW, the open geoscience committee is discussing its 2018 budet on its mailing list. The current deadline for the commenting phase / draft is Dec 15th.


best,
peter

>Dear Board, (cc: OpengeoScience Committee)
>
>I can inform you about an interesting opportunity for OSGeo.
>
>AGU (www.agu.org, representing 60.000 geoscientists globally) is currently preparing a project to implement the FAIR-principles (Findable|Accessible|Interoperable|Reusable) for their science >divisions and early career scientists. In this context, I'm attending the projects kickoff-meeting next week.
>
>The current focus of AGU is to apply FAIR to all kinds of research data which is used and published. 
>According to the project stakeholders at AGU, they want to create a critical mass of all stakeholders providing input how to advance the implememntaion of FAIR. 
>
>It can be argued that software, including the OSgeo projects, is also a kind of data. We know from the annual general meetings of AGU and its twin organisation EGU (European Geoscience Union), >that software tools from OSGeo projects are workhorses for science conducted by AGU/EGU members.
>
>OSGeo has been reaching out to EGU/AGU already: The Open Geoscience Committee has been organising annual townhall meetings at the EGU gernal assemblies for over four years, OSGeo BOF-meetings >have been organised during earlier AGU general assemblies. 
>
>While I have not been invited to the upcoming meeting because of being a OSgeo charter member, I believe this is a good opportunity to make our voice heard and put us officially on the map >>>
 (IMHO FAIR is fully compatible with the OSGeo paradigm) and to argue for a MOU with AGU.
>
>Feedback from the board would be appreciated, whether this approach is in the interest of OSGeo. If so, more advice on how to push for / prepare a MOU would be great (-> latest MOU with  DOI )
>
>
>Best,
>Peter