This year, I felt a higher level of energy at the International Meeting for Applied Geoscience and Energy, with numerous talks and vendors covering a broad spectrum of applications and areas under the AAPG/SEG umbrella: everything from geothermal to CCUS to more “traditional” oil and gas to AI. It was well attended, and I was especially encouraged to see such a broad range of experience levels and so many countries represented. There were several student groups from local STEM-focused schools who came around to the booths to ask questions and find out more about the industry and opportunities. If you couldn’t attend, we hope to see you next year.
The annual Division of Professional Affairs meeting was held on Monday, Aug. 26, and was well attended. Members were updated on changes the Bylaws Committee had worked on the previous months. There was plenty of discussion and questions. The minutes will be available to DPA members.
Tuesday was the official opening of the convention. DPA hosted a panel discussion on “Career Development within the Geosciences.” Deborah Sacrey, AAPG president, gave opening remarks and the panel consisted of Rebecca Caldwell of Chevron, Ryan Jarvis of Rock NRG, Ken Pfau of Devon, Richard Ball of Tri-Star Group and Matt Dangel, also of Tri-Star Group. The event was well attended and there were a number of questions leading to well-considered discussions.
We were extremely fortunate to have Verner Ayukegba from the African Energy Chamber as the DPA luncheon speaker on Wednesday. Mr. Ayukegba spoke enthusiastically of the opportunities within the Africa energy sector and how he works with governments and stakeholders to craft policies to facilitate investment in Africa. He believes there is plenty of opportunity for both large and small companies in Africa.
DPA? What’s in It for Me?
There are a number of professional societies available and, as you look at where your membership dollars would be best spent, you might wonder why you should select DPA from the AAPG menu. You might ask, “What’s in it for me?”
The first benefit in it for you is certification. As discussed in the last column and to be revisited in future columns, some of the Bylaws revisions provide for certification as a Subject Matter Expert in several special interest areas:
- Resource and reserve evaluation and reporting
- Conventional resource evaluation
- Unconventional resource evaluation
- Well planning, well operations and health, safety and environment
- Environmental geosciences
- Geomodeling, geostatistics, data analytics and AI
These revisions provide further opportunities for developing mid-career geoscientists. The goal is to equip our members with the necessary tools for a long-term professional career. Many other professions provide members with the opportunity for certification: Microsoft and cyber security come to mind. Being an international organization, certification through the Division of Professional Affairs of the AAPG provides a level of validity to your training and experience, and it’s not state-by-state or country-by-country; it’s international.
How Can the DPA Serve You?
The idea of servant leadership has deep roots. Made popular in the modern era by Rober K. Greenleaf, it is a managerial style which states “Do those served grow as persons?”
I’d like to hear what the DPA can do to help you develop your career: topics for courses and webinars, for instance. How can we help you get more value for your membership investment?
We all are good at complaining about what we’d like an organization to do and how we’d like to get more out of it. Well, to paraphrase my dad, “You can’t hit a home run if you’re not in the game.” How do you see your career developing? How can DPA help you achieve those goals? Volunteer. Get involved. Join and help us make AAPG and its divisions better. Let’s all become servant leaders.
Special Thanks
Many people were responsible for putting together a fantastic IMAGE 2024. I’d like to thank each and every one who contributed, volunteered and worked long hours to make everything come together. If I start to name them, I’ll forget someone so just let me say a special “thank you.”