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The Distinguished Service Citation is given annually to recognize long and distinguished service to the Ecological Society of America, to the larger scientific community, and to the larger purpose of ecology in the public welfare.

This year we are pleased to have selected Jim Reichman for the 2004 Distinguished Service Citation. Over his career, Jim has contributed to the ESA and the discipline of ecology in many ways; he has served on a variety of committees and boards and is currently Chair of the Publications Committee and an Editor for Ecological Applications. In the early 1990’s he served as a Program Director at the NSF and a few years later took a courageous step out of the comfort zone of a successful academic life to become the Asst Director of the ‘fledgling’ National Biological Survey. However his greatest professional accomplishment has been his leadership role as Director of the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS). Jim assumed the directorship of NCEAS shortly after it was established and was instrumental in getting establishing the initial vision for NCEAS, and its present role and prominence reflects Jim efforts, imagination and leadership.

Anyone who has spent time at NCEAS, read the papers that have come from activities there, interacted with (or hired) an NCEAS postdoc can point to ways in which NCEAS has changed the culture of ecological science. Most of the responsibility for the success of NCEAS can be attributed to Jim Reichman. Though he is quick to credit the contributions of others, it is well acknowledged that Jim has created an environment that has transformed both the national and international culture of ecology. NCEAS has extended its influence beyond traditional ecology into areas such as bioinformatics, conservation and natural resource management applications, and environmental education and outreach for schoolchildren. Most importantly, it has brought together environmental scientists from all over the world and the result has been an unparalleled time of interaction, collaboration, and community consensus.

Jim’s success as Director of NCEAS has not come at the cost of his research and scholarship; his current work with Eric Seabloom on restoration of California grasslands is both novel and controversial. Their work has shown that native species are highly competitive and that assemblages of native species can be resistant to invasion has challenged the prevailing dogma about grassland composition and restoration in California.Their work has attracted considerable national attention, including a recent news article in Science. His continuing involvement in research, teaching and mentoring of students and post-doctoral fellows has contributed to his success as Director of NCEAS.

Jim’s passion for the diversity of ecological science, dedication to promoting collaboration, warm and friendly personality and personal commitment toward interdisciplinary and novel approaches to ecology has created at NCEAS a very special place. We all benefit from his vision and dedication and it is a pleasure to recognize his contributions by awarding him the Distinguished Service Award.

Distinguished Service Citation Award Subcommittee: Kay Gross (Chair), Nelson Hairston, Jr., Bob Holt, Bea Van Horne, Paul Dayton, and Peter Groffman

The Mercer Award recognizes an outstanding ecological research paper published by one or more “younger” researchers (under 40 at the time of publication). The 2004 Award is for the authors of “Biodiversity, Invasion Resistance, and Marine Ecosystem Function: Reconciling Pattern and Process” (John J. Stachowicz, Heather Fried, Richard W. Osman and Robert B. Whitlatch; Ecology 83:2575-2590)

The connection between structure and function within ecosystems is a grand challenge for ecologists, and understanding the role of invasive species in that context is critical for management and conservation. John Stachowicz, Heather Fried and their colleagues have conducted one of the very few studies in marine environments that explicitly test effects of diversity on ecosystem function. It contains elegant field experiments using sessile marine invertebrates that are well-linked to surveys conducted in natural habitats of Long Island Sound, with clear articulation of complex results. This work also addresses an issue of key practical importance – the degree to which diversity per se affects invasion resistance. Increased diversity led to a heightened resistance to invasion, primarily because more speciose assemblages utilized more of the available limiting resource (attachment space) and buffered against temporal fluctuations in resource use by individual species. The research is particularly elegant because species-specific effects on invasibility are dissected from the impacts of community level diversity, and the mechanism of the diversity effect is identified. The Stachowicz et al. work is a seminal contribution that will stimulate many further studies in marine systems, as well as comparisons to ongoing, more mature efforts that are exploring the functional consequences of diversity in terrestrial environments.

John Stachowicz is Assistant Professor in the Section of Ecology and Evolution, University of California – Davis; he holds a Ph.D. (1998) from the University of North Carolina. Heather Fried is a graduate student in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Connecticut. Richard Osman is Curator in the Population and Community Ecology Group at the Academy of Natural Sciences Estuarine Research Center, and Robert Whitlatch is Prof­
essor in the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of Connecticut.

Distinguished Service Citation Award Subcommittee: Steve Heard (Chair), Sally Holbrook, James Morris, Jean Richardson, Andy Sih, Ellen Simms, and Mike Willig

The William S. Cooper Award is given by the Society in honor of one of the founders of modern plant ecology. The Cooper Award is made annually for an outstanding contribution in geobotany, physiographic ecology, plant succession, or the distribution of organisms along environmental gradients. The 2004 recipients are Drs. John W. Williams, Bryan N. Shuman, and Thompson Webb III for their 2001 paper, “Dissimilarity analyses of Late-Quaternary vegetation and climate in eastern North America”, published in Ecology 82:3346-3362.

The fossil record of the Late Quaternary has yielded an important, yet enigmatic, ecological observation: plant and animal communities have existed in the recent past that have no modern counterparts in terms of composition. The underlying causes of these peculiar biotic assemblages have stimulated debate in the ecological and paleoecological communities for the past four decades. In their paper, Williams, Shuman, and Webb address the problem using an elegant combination of numerical analyses, mapping techniques, paleoclimate simulations, and the extensive North American Pollen Database. They used the spatial and temporal patterns of vegetation dissimilarity during the period to evaluate alternative hypotheses concerning the underlying causes of the peculiar vegetation. Hypothesis-testing of this kind is difficult, but the authors developed and applied an ingenious approach, comparing maps of vegetation dissimilarities with maps of climate dissimilarity from present (using simulated paleoclimates, which are the only existing non-circular means for doing this). The spatial and temporal patterns are revealing and provocative, indicating that vegetation composition is contingent on climate, and that unique biotic assemblages will arise when unique climatic combinations occur. The study represents an important step forward in our understanding of vegetational responses to environmental change at broad spatial and temporal scales, and sets a new standard for paleoecological syntheses in other regions and time periods. It is highly relevant to global change concerns, because climatic gradients of the future may be very different from those of the past few thousand years, and so we may expect many existing biotic assemblages to disappear as new assemblages emerge under new climates.

The paper developed from research done while Williams and Shuman were graduate students in Webb’s lab at Brown University, where Webb is Professor of Geological Sciences. Williams is currently an Assistant Professor of Geography at the University of Wisconsin, and Shuman is an Assistant Professor of Geography at the University of Minnesota.

W.S. Cooper Award Subcommittee: Judie Bronstein (chair), Laura Hyatt, Sara Hotchkiss, Miles Silman, Scott Collins, and David Peterson

The Eugene P. Odum Award recognizes an ecologist for outstanding work in ecology education. Through teaching, outreach, and mentoring activities, recipients of this award have demonstrated their ability to relate basic ecological principles to human affairs.
The Odum Award subcommittee wishes to congratulate this year’s awardee for the Eugene P. Odum Award in Ecological Education, Dr. Richard “Dick” Root. The subcommittee was uniform in their praise for an ecologist whose primary contribution to the field of ecological education has been through setting an example as a researcher and a mentor. Dick has served as a mentor to 33 Ph.D. students and 4 M.S. students. Those cold numbers don’t tell half of the story, however. The list reads like a “who’s who” in ecology. Further, those students carried with them a mentoring model that they now employ, a deeply personal and enthusiastic view of nature and the role of being a naturalist in the field of ecology.

Dick’s students know themselves as “Rootlets”. One former student even wrote about his experience with Dick as being the “Root Cause” for his enjoyment and success as an ecologist. Former students confess that they were not even interested in ecology as a discipline until they either met and worked with Dick or were in his Field Ecology class at Cornell. Then, after as few as two lectures, they found themselves “hooked”. Many of these students confess to shamelessly copying Dick’s model in the classroom and in the field in terms of mentoring both graduate and undergraduate students. With such an ever widening network of deeply devoted and enthusiastic mentees, it is obvious that Dick Root’s impacts on ecological education are enormous.

The deeply personal and individual relationship that Dick built with each of his students was vitally important to them. One former student wrote, “Almost as if we were his biological children, Dick doted on us and, I am certain, lost sleep over our inevitable shortcomings, wondering where he might have gone wrong. Today I find myself treating my own students with similar regard.” Another former student writes, “Believing I was a pretty good writer, I proudly presented Dick with the first draft of my dissertation. He wrote just one comment on the Introduction: “Yech!” That one word (and several analogues later on in the draft) served me as a one-trial learning experience in how to write ecology papers without either fluff or excessive dryness.”

Dick Root also shines as a classroom teacher. His course, Field Ecology, at Cornell has received the highest student evaluation possible. The teaching model for this course emphasizes a cooperative and relaxed learning environment that still conveys the rigor of ecological inquiry. One student wrote on their evaluation form “I learned to think critically about ecological questions, and I even learned important life skills”. Former students conveyed story after story about how Dick’s enthusiasm and joy would be evident in all lectures, regardless of the subject.

It is impossible to enumerate the impact that Dick Root has had on the field of ecology and ecological education. Countless former students and their students and so on are being influenced by the model that he has laid out in which he encourages students to first observe in the field and from those observations commence further inquiry. His lab housed students involved in a wide range of ecological work, and therefore inculcated a curiosity and respect for ecology in the broadest possible terms.
It is with great pleasure that we award Dick Root with the 2004 Eugene P. Odum Award for Ecological Education.

Eugene P. Odum Award Subcommittee: Linda Wallace (Chair), Charlene D’Avanzo, Margaret Carreiro, Bruce Grant, Peter Feinsinger, and Kathy Winnett-Murray

The objective of the Corporate Award of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) is to identify and recognize a corporation, business, division, program, or an individual of a company for its accomplishments in incorporating sound ecological concepts, knowledge, and practices into its planning and operating procedures. This award was designed to encourage the use of ecological concepts in business and industry and to enhance communication among ecologists and the private sector. The Corporate Award is made annually in one of the six categories; the category for 2004 was "Sustainability of Biological Resources in Terrestrial Environments." The committee sought examples of corporate entities whose land resource management reflects a sound foundation in basic ecological principles and science.

The ESA Corporate Award Committee has awarded the 2004 corporate Award to the Taylor Guitar company in El Cajon, California, based on their innovative process of applying finishes to their guitars as well as their sustainable use of wood. The company has made significant efforts to reduce the amount of pollutants released into the air during the finishing process. Taylor Guitars is a leader in the acoustic guitar industry. The company is known for revolutionizing the design and manufacture of high-end acoustic guitars with significant innovations that produce superior instruments. These innovations are the brainchild of luthier/inventor/company president and co-owner, Bob Taylor, who pioneered the use of CNC (Computer Numerically Controlled) milling machines, Ultraviolet-cured finishes, laser cutters and various other high-tech procedures in the acoustic guitar building process. Their central innovation and demonstration of commitment to environmental responsibility was the groundbreaking development of a more environmentally friendly finish for guitars. Taylor was the first acoustic guitar manufacturer to develop a guitar finish curable with Ultraviolet-light. Prior to 1995, UV-curable finishes were available only for metal or plastic, not wood. Collaborating with a chemist, Taylor worked for years to develop a finish that was more resilient, more environmentally friendly, and more aesthetically pleasing than the lacquers commonly used on wooden instruments. The company also had to design and build its own curing ovens to accommodate the new, fume-reducing spray formula. In 1999, the San Diego Air Pollution Control District presented Taylor Guitars with an award for developing a system that greatly reduces the emission of volatile organic compounds into the air stream. Other examples of their commitment to environmental responsibility: A current project is developing a robotic spraying system that is much more efficient than hand spraying, to minimize waste of materials. Another new project in the development stages will allow them to procure an important wood – Honduran Mahogany – by purchasing large quantities of storm-felled trees under the auspices of the C.I.T.E.S. treaty. In the past, in order to get Hawaiian koa they have worked with landowners who have the blessings of Greenpeace, The Nature Conservancy, and The Hawaiian Island Forestry Association. Occasionally they buy African ebony when the African government auctions a load that was felled during the construction of a road or something similar. In 2001, they donated a portion of sales for the Limited Edition Liberty Tree Guitars to American Forests, the nation’s oldest conservation organization.

Corporate Award Subcommittee: Kate Lajtha (Chair), Joan Ehrenfeld, Greg Aplet, Laura Huenneke and Scott Stoleson

The Sustainability Science Award of the Ecological Society of America recognizes the authors of the peer reviewed paper published in the past five years that makes the greatest contribution to the emerging science of ecosystem and regional sustainability through the integration of ecological and social sciences. One of the most pressing challenges facing humanity is the sustainability of important ecological, social and cultural processes in the face of changes in the forces that shape ecosystems and regions.

Unprecedented directional changes in climate, human population, technology and social and economic institutions alter the structure and functioning of current ecological and social systems. The Sustainability Science Award recognizes the role that science can contribute to addressing these challenges. This is the first year that the award is being given, and it will continue to be given annually.

The subcommittee has selected Marten Scheffer, Steve Carpenter, Jonathan Foley, Carl Folke, and Brian Walker as the 2004 Sustainability Science Award winners for their paper:
Scheffer, M., S. Carpenter, J. Foley, C. Folke, and B. Walker. 2001. Catastrophic shifts in ecosystems. Nature, vol. 413: 591-596.

This review paper was selected because it clearly and succinctly presented the theoretical basis for conditions that would give rise to alternative steady states in ecosystems and evidence from multiple field studies that was consistent with this theory. For each of these studies the authors describe a range of factors that led to loss of resilience prior to the shift to a new state. By focusing on the determinants of resilience rather than the specific triggers that caused the change, it is likely that the results can be generalized more broadly.

Sustainability Science Award Subcommittee: Terry Chapin (Chair), Kathryn Cottingham, Erika Zavaleta, Garry Peterson, Gary Kofinas, Roz Naylor

E. Lucy Braun was an eminent plant ecologist and the first woman president of the Ecological Society of America. Besides describing and mapping the deciduous forest regions of eastern North America, Lucy Braun served as a dedicated teacher and role model to her students. To honor her, this award is presented to a student for the outstanding poster presentation at the Society’s annual meeting.

The 2004 winner of the E. Lucy Braun Award is Pedro Flombaum for his poster “The role of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning: a removal experiment in the Patagonian steppe, Argentina.” This work is based on Pedro’s doctoral research at the University of Buenos Aires under the supervision of O. E. Sala. Pedro presented results from species removal experiments in natural ecosystems in the Patagonian Steppe that showed that the effects of biodiversity on aboveground net primary production in natural ecosystems are larger than reported using artificial communities. The Braun judges were impressed with Pedro’s poster in that it included new creative work, he described earlier reconstructive studies and departed from those earlier studies using plant removals from natural systems to understand the relationship between biodiversity and productivity, and the poster exhibited work based on a strong experimental design and included a sophisticated analysis. Judges commented that in discussing the poster with Pedro, he effectively guided them through the elements of the project as presented on the poster, explained the design and analysis clearly, and showed a strong grasp of prior related studies. Pedro received his B.Sc. in Biology from Buenos Aires University in 1997.

2004 Student Awards Selection Committee: Christopher F. Sacchi (Chair), Nancy Eyster-Smith, Paul Marino, J. Alan Yeakley

Members present:
Bill Schlesinger (President), Ann Bartuska (Past-President), Jerry Melillo (President-Elect), Jim Clark (Vice President for Science), Norm Christensen (Vice President for Finance), Alison Power (Vice President for Public Affairs), Carol Brewer (Vice President for Education and Human Resources), Osvaldo Sala (Member-at-Large), Margaret Palmer (Member-at-Large), Edward Johnson (Member-at-Large).

Members of the 2004–2005 Board present:
Nancy Grimm (incoming President-elect; 25 May only), David Inouye (incoming Secretary), Gus Shaver (incoming Vice President for Science), Dee Boersma (incoming Member-at-Large)

Staff present:
Katherine McCarter (Executive Director), Cliff Duke (Director of Science), Nadine Lymn (Director of Public Affairs), David Baldwin (Managing Editor), Elizabeth Biggs (Director of Finance), Jason Taylor (Director of Education), Sue Silver (Editor)

Monday, 24 May 2004

I. ROLL CALL

A. The Governing Board unanimously adopted the proposed agenda.

II. DINNER MEETING

Guest speaker: Jim Turner (Minority Counsel, House Science Committee) discussed the dynamics of science policy and funding in Congress. The current stalemate in appropriation bills is unprecedented in his (almost 30 years) experience. In response to questions he also discussed the politicization of science, how to move science into policy making, climate change, and the demise of the OTA.

III. RATIFICATION OF VOTES TAKEN SINCE THE NOVEMBER, 2003 MEETING

A. Minutes of the November, 2003 meeting: moved, seconded, adopted unanimously.

B. Awards nominations: moved, seconded, adopted unanimously.

The nominees were:
Eminent Ecologist Award: Dr. Sam McNaughton
Distinguished Service Citation: Dr. Jim Reichman
Corporate Award: Taylor Guitars
Mercer Award: Dr. John Stachowicz, H. Fried, R. W. Osman, and R. B. Whitlach
Cooper Award: Dr. Jack Williams, B. N. Shuman, and T. Webb III
Odum Award for Excellence in Ecology Education: Dr. Richard Root
(See also item XIII. Sustainability Science Award)

C. Genetically Engineered Organisms position paper: moved, seconded, adopted unanimously. It was suggested that this paper be sent to the European Union, the International Biosafety meeting, and NAFTA.

IV. REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT

President Schlesinger reported that this has been a busy period, including activities such as testimony before Congress. Schlesinger signed a letter coordinated by the UCS on global warming. ESA weighed in on the peer review issue through comments to OMB. ESA was not invited to sign the letter about visa difficulties for international scientists initiated by the National Academy of Sciences. However the Society is aware of this issue. Information about this issue is available at ‹www7.nationalacademies.org/visas› and there is a link to this site on the ESA Portland meeting web site.

He wrote to Mary Clutter at NSF to support renewal of NCEAS.

V. REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND STAFF. (Only three issues are discussed here; the full report was distributed in writing before the meeting.)

A. Marketing

Director of Finance Elizabeth Biggs noted that ESA needs to make Frontiers self-sufficient over the next 8–10 years. ESA has initiated a number of marketing efforts to promote sales and attract advertising revenue. This spring a consultant was hired to help with this. About 70 libraries subscribe to Frontiers (vs. about 2000 for other ESA journals). To help increase that percentage, there is a form in each issue of Frontiers for subscribers to send to their libraries. ESA is also trying some direct-mail initiatives, and working with subscription agents.

One goal of Frontiers is to increase ESA membership, and indeed, membership is still growing (will probably be up about 300 this year, and was up about 300 last year). The Society is doing advertising at other professional meetings, and contacting authors who are not members.

B. NEON

Schlesinger reported on a February meeting at NSF that McCarter, Duke, and Schlesinger attended to express ESA’s interest in a partnership between ESA and NEON coordinators. Two groups have responded to a RFP for a NEON Coordinating Consortium. Schlesinger and staff met with a team developing a NEON proposal in connection with AIBS and conveyed ESA’s interest in being involved. AIBS subsequently indicated that they did not see a role for ESA at this time in the process. National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE) is the other group that put in a proposal, and they were enthusiastic about involving ESA; Cliff Duke worked with them to develop the community engagement aspect of the proposal. There was some discussion about the history of ESA’s involvement in NEON. The Governing Board includes representatives of both groups submitting proposals to NSF, so discussion was limited in scope because of conflicts of interest.

C. Millennium Fund

Although Board members had committed to help increase the number of donors, it appears that there has been no success yet, so McCarter reminded Board members about their commitment. The fund currently contains $52,000. The fund generally receives contributions from the same group of traditional donors. She will send Board members a list of current donors and some cards to use to help solicit new ones.

Tuesday, 25 May 2004

VI. FINANCIAL UPDATES

McCarter presented the third-quarter financial report that shows a positive bottom line with some excess revenue over expense.

A. ESA Long-term Investments

Vice President for Finance Christensen reported that the endowment is currently about $855,000; part is restricted, set up by individuals for particular purposes (e.g., awards), part is Board-restricted (quasi-endowment, principal could be spent by decision of the Governing Board), and part is unrestricted. About $573,000 is invested in a value fund through Townley, in a relatively conservative way. About 3 years ago the Board voted to move about $500,000 to a growth fund with Riggs and Company; what is left of this fund is now valued at about $270,000. Christensen noted that it may be appropriate to move this money to Townley at some point.

Vice President for Finance Christensen wants guidance on spending policy. A conservative policy might be to spend about 5% of the endowment/year (about $40,000/yr). He suggests that a rolling 3-year average of 5% would be better policy, allowing some adjustments for annual variation in income. Another option suggested is that on 31 December we calculate a moving 3-year 5% average of the endowment principal, which can be considered available for the following year. The Board asked that a recommendation be brought back in August. Christensen believes that it is probably not appropriate to try and grow the endowment through investments.

Christensen raised the issue of the role of the Finance and Investments Committee. The Board agreed that this group needed to continue its oversight of investment policy.

Additional discussion raised the need for a development committee to work on increasing the endowment. It was suggested that the dormant Fund Raising Committee could be reactivated, perhaps with new members, to function as a development committee.

We currently have a $163,000 rainy day fund (unrestricted reserves); target is $250,000.

VII. PRESENTATION OF PROPOSED FY 2004–2005 BUDGET

McCarter reviewed the budgeting process that begins in April with staff reviewing the income and expenses, consulting with the VP for Finance. A draft budget is presented to the Board in May. Any additions or changes are reviewed by the Board in August and then presented to the Council for approval. McCarter provided an overview of assumptions, calculations of revenues and expenses, adjustments to the previous year’s budget, program adjustments, and activities not funded. There was considerable discussion about the costs of library subscriptions since the office must provide price changes to libraries in June.

Motion: That the print subscription rates for libraries be increased by 7%, with a similar consideration for online subscriptions. Seconded and approved unanimously.

A. Discussion of proposed program budget adjustments

While all ESA members in developed countries receive hard copies of Frontiers, it is now provided only electronically to developing countries because of the significant delivery problems (e.g., recently, none of 30 copies of Ecology sent to Brazil arrived at their destination). It will cost about $7000–8000 for printing and shipping to mail printed copies.

Motion: That we spend up to $10,000 to provide printed copies of Frontiers to members in developing countries. Seconded and approved unanimously.

The Board of Professional Certification has requested $3050 in addition to the funds provided each year for a meeting. This would make it possible, for example, to recruit at meetings of other societies.

Motion: That the request from the Board of Professional Certification for a $3050 increase in their annual budget be approved for 2 years, during which time we would like some evaluation of the effectiveness of the Certification program. Seconded and approved unanimously.

Carol Brewer brought a recommendation from the Women and Minorities in Ecology committee that the Society conduct a membership survey to update the 1992 survey. (M. M. Holland, D. M. Lawrence, D. J. Morin, C. Hunsaker, D. Inouye, A. Janetos, H. R. Pulliam, W. Robertson, and J. Wilson. 1992. Profiles of ecologists: results of a survey of the membership of the Ecological Society of America.)

Motion: That up to $10,000 be provided to plan and conduct a survey of our membership. McCarter was asked to find the most appropriate place to find this funding, including using the Millennium Fund. Motion seconded and approved unanimously.

IX. DISCUSSION OF FURTHER IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL VISIONS REPORT

A. Development of the draft plan for a Rapid Response Team

A plan to develop teams of ESA members who would be available to respond quickly to topical issues was reviewed. A suggested list of topics was presented. The Board proposed an additional area: Ecological implications of international conflicts and military activities (Duke has a long-standing interest in this area). It was also suggested that ESA institutionalize meetings of the rapid response teams during the annual meeting. Staff will proceed with implementation for the Rapid Response teams.

B. Fostering international collaborations among societies

President-Elect Melillo just returned from China, where he spoke with the current and upcoming presidents of the Chinese Ecological Society. They were enthusiastic about the idea of exchanging representatives to annual meetings, and about translating of selected ESA publications into Chinese. They have about 6000 members, and the Society is quite active (e.g., 16 committees). There is also