GLOBE Program Office News Brief
December 2008

Community Spotlight

Next in our series highlighting an active member of the GLOBE community whose GLOBE contributions deserve the spotlight, we feature Mr. Raj Mehta, Chairman of the GLOBE International Advisory Committee (GIAC) representing the GLOBE Asia and Pacific Region, and Country Coordinator for India.

Raj Mehta received his undergraduate training in Engineering from Benaras Hindu University in Varanasi, India. He joined the Government of India Ministry of Environment & Forests in 1978 where he continues to serve to this day. Over the years, his professional development has included the study of journalism from Bhartiya Vidhya Bhavan in Delhi, and Environmental Science and Technology from the International Institute of Hydraulic and Environmental Engineering, Delft, the Netherlands.

For the past 17 years, Mr. Mehta's focus at the Ministry has been the dissemination of environmental information, implementation of international interagency cooperative programs, and the creation of environmental awareness among students and the general public. Despite his many responsibilities at the Ministry, Raj makes time to oversee GLOBE in India, organizing teacher trainings and ensuring the vitality of GLOBE in schools across the Indian subcontinent.

Raj Mehta is the author of many books, publications, and papers concerning the environmental impact of the mining industry, and strategies and policies for environmental education initiatives. He lives in Delhi with his wife Anita and sons Mayank and Pranav.

GLOBE Partners with Live Earth

The past month has seen the growth of a new partnership for the GPO. In development is a promising collaboration between GLOBE and Live Earth, the annual concerts aimed at encouraging awareness of climate change and commitment to action to solve the climate crisis, founded by Al Gore and Los Angeles music producer Kevin Wall. Last year, seven concerts on seven continents — all on a single day — brought together a global audience of several hundred million viewers. GLOBE is playing a role in advising Live Earth organizers about a GLOBE learning activity that will be introduced as part of a new educational focus to the previously all-entertainment event. The GLOBE Web site will keep you abreast of developments with the ongoing GLOBE-Live Earth collaborations and upcoming events.

ESSP HIghlight: Seasons and Biomes

From 11-18 November, Seasons and Biomes team members Dr. Elena Sparrow, Dr. Leslie Gordon, and Ms. Martha Kopplin traveled to Thailand to visit classrooms and participate in GLOBE workshops for Thai teachers and scientists. They met with students who shared their investigations of local mosquito species distribution, based on larvae collected in water containers at their homes, and with deans and faculty of Walailak University to discuss possible collaboration opportunities. Dr. Sparrow delivered a lecture on climate change in the Arctic and met with students afterward for a group discussion of climate change issues. Dr. Gordon also taught the draft Seasons and Biomes learning activity "Seasonal Leaf Changes Inquiry." Walailak University supported the Seasons and Biomes team by covering travel and logistics costs during the very busy and productive two days.

Next, the Seasons and Biomes team traveled north to Chiang Mai where they held a Seasons and Biomes workshop for 80 teachers and scientists from Thailand, hosted and supported by the Thai Ministry of Education's Institute for the Promotion of Science and Technology (IPST). IPST staff provided translation throughout the four-day workshop, held at the Botanic Resort in the Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden, a tract of native northern rainforest 30 km NW of Chiang Mai. The Seasons and Biomes team and visiting Thai scientists presented information on global climate change, IPY, and the impact of climate change in Thailand and taught GLOBE learning activities and protocols. Part of the last day was devoted to helping teachers work in regional groups to develop implementation plans. Please watch for a GLOBE Star soon to come, to read a detailed account of the Seasons and Biomes team in Thailand.

GLOBE Around the World: Regional Update

The GPO continues its commitment to facilitate its international Partners to become self-sustainable and announced a Request for Proposal (RFP) process to facilitate the establishment of formal GLOBE Regional Offices to all country coordinators on 17 November 2008. Each GLOBE Regional Office will ensure support services to the region through the identification and employment of a Regional Desk Officer/Help Desk representative and implement a transition to sustainable operations for their respective GLOBE Region over the next 2 years (January 2009 December 2010). The work of the Regional Offices, during the 2 year period facilitated by the GPO, will focus on developing the necessary infrastructure and funding base in each region to ensure continued sustainability, without further assistance from the GPO, beginning in January 2011. All information pertaining to this process has been posted on the Partner Administrative section of the GLOBE Web site for international country coordinators. A short summary of this information has been provided below.

UCAR expects to award one subaward in each of the following regions:

• Africa
• Asia-Pacific
• Europe-Eurasia
• Near East-North Africa
• Latin America-Caribbean

North America (U.S. and Canada) will continue to operate under the management of UCAR.

The following schedule represents the dates the Offeror should use for planning purposes. UCAR may make changes to this schedule at any time in its sole discretion.

Contracts will be awarded for an initial term of 6 months, with three 6-month option periods, for a total possible period of performance of two years. Proposals are due to UCAR Contract Administrator, Alison Propoes by 3:00 P.M. Mountain Standard Time on Monday, 5 January 2009.

Alison Propes, UCAR Contract Administrator
Email: apropes@ucar.edu
Telephone: 303-497-8877
Fax: 303-497-8502

GLOBE Presence at Events and Conferences Around the World

Below is a list of conferences and events attended by the GLOBE community. Please send us information about the conferences where you represent GLOBE so that we can list them each month. Send your information by the 20th of each month to communications@globe.gov.

• National Science Teachers Southern Area Regional Conference, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA, 30 October - 1 November 2008
  GLOBE U.S. Southern Area Regional Networking Session: 31 October
• Evaluation 2008: Evaluation Policy and Evaluation Practice, Denver, Colorado, USA, 3-9 November 2008
• National Science Teachers Western Area Regional Conference, Portland, Oregon, USA, 20-23 November 2008
  GLOBE U.S. Western Area Regional Networking Session: 22 November
• Colorado Science Teachers Conference, Denver, Colorado USA, 20-22 November 2008
• American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL), Orlando, Florida, USA, 21-21 November 2008
• The Group on Earth Observations (GEO), Bucharest, Romania, 19-29 November 2008

Future Conference Opportunities

• National Science Teachers Midwestern Area Regional Conference, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA, Cincinnati, Ohio, 4-6 December 2008
  4 December: GLOBE U.S. Midwestern Area Regional Networking Session
• National NSTA Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana, 19-22 March 2009
  19 March: Wednesday North America Regional Meeting
  20 March: Thursday NSTA International Day
  21-22 March: NSTA Conference Events

Funding Opportunities

Don't forget to check the GLOBE Web site for information about funding opportunities that we learn about. Go to www.globe.gov/content/funding_opps/Main.

For example, this opportunity was just listed: On 1 December 2008, the U.S. Department of States Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) launched the interactive video contest "My Culture and Your Culture= Share your Story." This video contest is part of a Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) initiative to encourage cross-cultural community building and mutual understanding via the web and social media platforms. The contest also highlights the newly designed website. Go to this site for contest details. You'll have to sign up with ExchangesConnect Online to learn more and to submit entries. Videos will be judged on originality, creativity, effectiveness, and production quality. Four winners will receive the grand prize: an all-expense-paid, two week cultural exchange program to the United States (for non U.S. winners) or from the United States to a country to be determined (for the U.S. winners). Contest closes 26 January 2009.

New Stars and Announcements on the GLOBE Web site

The GLOBE Program office wants to hear stories of projects and people who shine. These are our 'Stars', the bright lights that spark our imagination and inspire us with news of GLOBE at work in the world. See more information about how to submit your stories.

Recent Stars and Announcements include:

• GLOBE Parent Council Hosts Family Event in Detroit, MI USA
• Participate in the 2008 Surface Temperature Field Campaign

Thank you for reading the December News Brief and for staying abreast of developments at the GLOBE Program Office. We encourage your interaction and input. Please send your comments, questions, and nominations for the monthly Community Member "Spotlight", listing of conferences you have recently attended or plan to attend, and funding opportunities that you would like to share to communications@globe.gov.

All editions of the GLOBE Program Office News Brief can be found here.