CSTPR Noontime Seminar

Our Connected Planet: Putting Science and Innovation into Action
by Susan Avery, President Emerita, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Innovation for our connected planet requires system understanding:  of the earth, of environmental and human sustainability needs, and of economies.  The societal forces for adaptation and mitigation of climate change requires both social and engineering solutions.  This presentation will illustrate some of that innovation – in science, adaptation, and mitigation – through the lens of systems approaches.  
Susan K. Avery is president emerita of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and professor emeritus at the University of Colorado, Boulder (UCB).  Currently she is serving as a faculty affiliate in the Center for Science and Technology Policy Research at UCB, is a member and chair of the board of trustees of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, and serves on the Exxon Mobil Corporation Board of Directors.   Dr. Avery holds a PhD in atmospheric sciences from the University of Illinois and a BS in physics from Michigan State University.  The author or co-author of over 110 peer-reviewed articles and reports, she has given scientific presentations to a wide variety of lay and professional audiences.   She has been active in Congressional outreach, including testimony and briefings; in US and international consortia dedicated to ocean and atmosphere research, observation, and applications; and worked with the Governor’s committee to develop the Massachusetts Green Economy plan.  Her current service includes the Board of the American Institute of Physics and advisory committees for the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the NSF Office of International Science and Engineering.  Dr. Avery is a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Meteorological Society, for which she also served as president.  Awards and recognition include honorary degrees from Michigan State University and the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth; charter membership of the National Associate Program in the National Academy of Sciences; and a Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award from the University of Illinois.