AAPG Remains Committed to Future Global Development
As
reported in the accompanying story, in-depth discussions within the Constitution and Bylaws Committee of the House of Delegates recently concluded that significant bylaws changes are not needed in order for AAPG to continue to globalize. The purposes of globalization for AAPG are to collect and disseminate petroleum geoscience, to offer a more relevant but convenient membership to geologists worldwide, to provide easier access to AAPG services and products, and to provide a liability shield for AAPG assets. The oil and gas industry already is global, and as long as it is done without damaging the strong existing base of affiliated societies and volunteers it makes sense to continue globalizing the scientific organization that serves those who work in that industry.
No process of growth is linear, because perspectives change and the milieu we swim in is fluid. AAPG headquarters staff, two ad hoc committees and a standing HoD committee have spent considerable time looking at various models for globalization, and have made different recommendations at different times. Given the recent conclusions of the C&BL committee, it appears there are fewer barriers to globalization than originally thought.
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As
reported in the accompanying story, in-depth discussions within the Constitution and Bylaws Committee of the House of Delegates recently concluded that significant bylaws changes are not needed in order for AAPG to continue to globalize. The purposes of globalization for AAPG are to collect and disseminate petroleum geoscience, to offer a more relevant but convenient membership to geologists worldwide, to provide easier access to AAPG services and products, and to provide a liability shield for AAPG assets. The oil and gas industry already is global, and as long as it is done without damaging the strong existing base of affiliated societies and volunteers it makes sense to continue globalizing the scientific organization that serves those who work in that industry.
No process of growth is linear, because perspectives change and the milieu we swim in is fluid. AAPG headquarters staff, two ad hoc committees and a standing HoD committee have spent considerable time looking at various models for globalization, and have made different recommendations at different times. Given the recent conclusions of the C&BL committee, it appears there are fewer barriers to globalization than originally thought.
The way forward will take several forms. We will continue to build offices in AAPG Regions when and where it makes sense to do so and as there is a demand for them. These offices will be developed deliberately, with regular assessments of their financial and political health, and with legal counsel. We will monitor operations to make sure the Region members and local affiliated societies are benefiting from the presence of regional offices, and that the offices are economically solvent. Interactions with the AAPG Regions will be formalized with memoranda of understanding plus procedures and processes developed with strong input from the Regions, making it clear on both sides what is expected and what can and can’t be done in the day-to-day business of running AAPG. Similar memoranda eventually will be developed to clarify the interactions between AAPG and the AAPG Sections. And in another four or five years we can look again to see if the present governance structure is still adequate for the larger global association.
During this process, the AAPG Sections will gain by belonging to an organization with a larger, stronger membership. Scientific and business ideas developed in the Regions will more easily filter back to cross-pollinate with ideas developed in the Sections. AAPG’s stature as a scientific organization will grow with global scientific representation.
But first, let us do no harm: We must encourage global development without discouraging the strong existing system. During the coming year, members of the HQ staff and the EC will be visiting the meetings of some of the affiliated societies, re-establishing the strong bonds that have made AAPG the source of pride that it is.
See Regions & Sections Column for October.