Town Hall Meeting on Geobiology and Low-Temperature Geochemistry - Fostering Community Input of Emerging Research Opportunities and Priorities

This proposal requests modest support to enable a Town Hall meeting associated with the upcoming V.M. Goldschmidt 2010 meeting. The purpose of the meeting is to gather input from the Geobiology and Low-Temperature Geochemistry research community with the larger aim of identifying emerging research opportunities and broad science priorities for the coming decade. The 2010 V.M. Goldschmidt Conference provides a unique opportunity to reach a strong representation of the community because it brings together the many realms within geobiology and geochemistry. It is a primary aim of the Town Hall meeting to enable the Geobiology and Low-Temperature Geochemistry community to identify research priorities and define the big, fundamental questions that will drive the field over the coming decade. Input from both meetings will provide grist for a Workshop to be held in the fall of 2010 that will bring together community representatives to synthesize Town Hall meeting input and identify research priorities. Input from the Town Hall meetings and research opportunities and priorities identified at the subsequent Workshop are intended to inform members of the committee on New Research Opportunities in the Earth Sciences (NROES) recently commissioned by the National Research Council.

Broader Impacts:

The aims of this small proposal are to foster community input and dialog regarding the scientific opportunities and priorities in Geobiology and Low-Temperature Geochemistry. The requested funds will be used to create a welcoming environment and an opportunity to engage individuals across the demographic spectrum in this process. All professional ranks and students will be encouraged to participate in the Town Hall meeting.