Anna Shaughnessy is passionate about SEG. She joined in 1980 and has advanced to become a seasoned volunteer leader, driving positive progress within the Society. She is currently the vice chair of the SEG Foundation. Previously, Shaughnessy was secretary and treasurer of SEG’s Executive Committee, chair of the Finance Committee, founding member of the Women’s Network Committee, and member of the Distinguished Lecture, SEG Global Inc., and SEAM Audit committees. In 2019, Shaughnessy was asked by the SEG Board to step in and serve as interim executive director while SEG was searching for a new executive director, allowing for continuity and a smooth transition.

Shaughnessy received her BS from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and MS from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Her professional career has shaped her into a well-rounded leader by merging managerial and corporate practices with an academic in-depth experience. In summary, Shaughnessy has led complex projects and multicultural teams around the world for Mobil Oil, Saudi Aramco, Texaco, and Kerr-McGee. She has held positions as manager of reservoir characterization, geostatistics, new ventures, and international exploration, to name a few. Her academic insights were developed during her six years as executive director of the Earth Resources Laboratory at her alma mater, MIT. Her combined experience of working in industry and academia has given her a unique perspective regarding key drivers, enablers, and challenges in applied geophysics. 

Position Statement

I am writing this position statement as the COVID-19 pandemic is ravaging the world. Borders have closed, markets have plunged, oil prices have fallen, and many people have fallen ill or died. COVID-19 is affecting us all on a personal level as well as affecting our industry.

Still, these are times to reflect on the future. SEG’s role to strengthen and define geophysics in our society must and will continue. Our Society’s leadership will need to support our members and stakeholders in new and innovative ways. A thorough knowledge of all facets of SEG will boost a comprehensive and collaborative approach toward solutions going forward. With your support, I will embrace the opportunity to take on the position of president-elect and strive to create an even more inclusive and diverse SEG that caters to our global membership. I will steer SEG to focus on:

• prioritizing efforts to strengthen our most relevant products and programs.
• engaging our diverse membership to identify gaps in our existing offerings and create new programs to fill those needs.
• growing our humanitarian efforts.
• empowering our global offices and members to deliver customized solutions.
• energizing our collaboration with sister organizations.

Bruce Z. Shang is currently the manager of reservoir technology and development geosciences at Noble Energy Inc. He earned his PhD in geophysics from the University of Houston and BS in geology from China Petroleum University. Shang has 30 years of industry experience, of which the last 10 years were in technology management. Before joining Noble Energy, he was director of reservoir geophysics at Sinopec Tech Houston and subsurface team lead and reservoir characterization manager at Marathon Oil. Shang started his career as a researcher in seismic imaging and inversion and later expanded into interpretation, reservoir characterization, modeling, and reservoir technology. He won the Best of EAGE presentation (2006) and was invited as an honored presenter at the 2007 AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition. He received Marathon’s Innovation and Effective Knowledge Transfer Award (2009) and Best Use of Innovative Technology Award (2011). He is a strong believer in interdisciplinary collaboration among different societies. He has published with SEG, the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG), and the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (EAGE) on the subjects of geology, geophysics, and reservoir engineering. Shang is also a member of AAPG, SPE, and EAGE.

Shang is the current chair of the SEG Global Inc. board (2018–2020), which provides guidance and supervision to SEG China operations. Interest in SEG in China has grown exponentially over the past few years, as demonstrated by the increase in technical submissions to Annual Meetings and peer-reviewed journals from China. Shang was the inaugurating chair of the SEG Oil and Gas Reserves Committee (2008–2010). During this time, he promoted geophysics in resource and reserve estimation as reliable technology, influenced the SEC 2010 reserve reporting rules, and advocated essential training programs. Shang was also a director of the AAPG/SEG International Conference and Exhibition board (2015–2017). He has cochaired more than a dozen SEG workshops, forums, and technical sessions. He liaised between SEG and SPE, while serving as the SEG Oil and Gas Reserves Committee chair. Shang served as president (2013) and chairman (2015) of the Chinese American Petroleum Association (CAPA) and signed affiliated and associated society agreements with SEG and EAGE, respectively, during his CAPA presidency.

Position Statement

I strongly believe in SEG’s bright future despite the historical downturn our industry and profession are experiencing presently. I am very keen to promote the value and advancement of geophysics in both traditional applications and by pioneering emerging and exciting new technologies to help translate the current challenges into great opportunities for our members through integration, collaboration, diversity, and globalization.

• Integration: A decade of factory-style development in unconventional plays has caused gross economic challenges to many development projects. In addition to advancing geophysics in conventional plays, I would advocate the importance of geophysics in integrated subsurface studies for the efficient and economic development of unconventional plays.
• Collaboration: Collaboration across different disciplines and professional societies is critical to developing new technologies and showing the value of geophysics. I will work to strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration by growing partnerships with sister societies to benefit our members.
• Diversity: SEG is home to a diverse set of professionals in many different attributes, including professional skills, academic status, experience level, age, gender, institutional affiliation, race, ethnicity, district membership, etc. I will work to strengthen SEG diversity by advocating broader inclusion in our strategies, activities, organization, and leadership teams. I believe diversity is critical to building a stronger society.
• Globalization: Globalization is in our SEG mission and one of our strengths. Today, the majority of SEG members live outside of the United States. Thus, I will focus on understanding and meeting the needs of current global members and growing international memberships to further strengthen SEG’s global leadership in applied geophysics.

Peter Cramer is the founder and managing partner of the Pc Advisory Group. Cramer earned a BS in physics from Rice University in 1981 and joined SEG in 1984. He is also a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists. Cramer became a director of the SEG Foundation in 2015 and has been treasurer since 2018, helping the Foundation raise more than US$11 million in support of SEG programs. He holds patents in 4D acquisition and hydraulic fracturing monitoring and assisted Bob Sheriff in the compilation of Reservoir Geophysics.

Cramer’s career spans nearly 40 years, beginning with Gulf Oil as a geophysicist working on projects including the first offshore 3D survey in Angola. Next, his career took him to Geosource working on vertical seismic profile applications and then to Shell where he worked as a seismic crew party chief and interpreter involved in expanding the use of 3D data onshore and in deep water. At British-Borneo Exploration, he was involved in the first use of mini tension lag platforms for deepwater field development. Cramer’s career then led him into management starting at Phillips Petroleum (now ConocoPhillips) where, over 18 years, he held exploration and technology management roles including exploration manager Gulf of Mexico, global geophysical technology manager, U.S. onshore exploration manager, global exploration portfolio manager, and global new ventures exploration manager. Cramer joined Devon Energy in 2018 where he was vice president of exploration and reservoir technology. In April 2019, he founded the Pc Advisory Group to provide consulting services to the upstream exploration and production sector. 

Position Statement

I joined the SEG Foundation Board due to my desire to give back to the Society that provided me the opportunity over the years to meet, work with, and learn from many outstanding geophysicists and leaders, beginning with Tom Fulton at Gulf Oil. My time on the Foundation Board has opened my eyes to the rich diversity of SEG in its programs, impact, and membership.  It has also opened my eyes to the challenges we face in an evolving world, which include: 

• ensuring geophysicists and geophysics are seen as relevant to solving problems that improve living standards and sustainability.
• accelerating our journey to becoming a truly global organization that thinks broadly, communicates effectively, and acts locally to support its members and their communities.
• attracting and retaining the next generation by improving and clearly communicating our value proposition as a society, not only to members but to the larger community.

My experience as SEG Foundation treasurer has helped me prepare for the role of SEG treasurer. I will work to see that SEG has the financial resources it needs to meet these challenges while maintaining our position as the preeminent global society for applied geophysics and supporting our members worldwide.

Sherif M. Hanafy received a BS (Cairo University, 1993), MS (Cairo University, 1996), and PhD (Kiel University, 2002) in geophysics. He received a PhD scholarship (1999) from Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst and a Fulbright fellowship (2004) to pursue postdoctoral studies at the University of Utah. Currently, he is an associate professor of geophysics at King Fahd University in Saudi Arabia. Hanafy was a senior research scientist at King Abdullah University between 2009 and 2018, a postdoctoral fellow and adjunct associate professor at the University of Utah between 2004 and 2007, and assistant professor at Cairo University between 2002 and 2009.

Hanafy has more than 25 years of experience in academia and 12 years of cooperation with industry as a member of the Utah Tomography and Modeling/Migration and Center for Subsurface Imaging and Fluid Modeling consortiums. During this time period, he coauthored more than 40 papers in peer-reviewed journals and more than 50 expanded abstracts at international conferences. He has achieved the following distinctions:

• member of the Distinguished Lecture Committee since 2019
• district 10 representative in 2019
• 2017 SEG Honorary Lecturer in the Middle East and Africa
• member of the organizing committee for the first (2013), second (2015), and third (2019) SEG/DGS Near Surface Modeling and Imaging Workshop in Bahrain
• associate editor for Geophysics since 2015
• member of the Continuing Education Committee since 2013
• special editor for SEG from 2013 to 2015
• key contact for the Seismic Theory sessions at the SEG Annual Meetings from 2012 to 2016
• founder and advisor of the SEG Cairo University Student Chapter from 2005 to 2007

Hanafy’s research interests include geophysical field methods, seismic interferometry, traveltime tomography, early arrival tomography, seismic modeling, seismic inversion and migration, data interpolation/extrapolation, shallow applications of resistivity and ground-penetrating radar methods, and machine learning.

Position Statement

I am honored to run for the SEG director at large position. I have many years of experience working with SEG as an associate editor and a member of SEG committees. I also have many years of experience working in academia and cooperation with industry. If I am elected, I will work with SEG to:

• increase SEG cooperation with universities and industry.
• encourage outreach activities for young generations of geophysicists in developing countries. The SEG Library could be the most convenient way to approach them; however, this comes with various challenges. I will work with SEG try to find solutions to these challenges.
• focus on new and emerging technologies in geophysics.
• increase the constructive interaction between SEG and other fields, especially environmental.

An important role of SEG is to help geophysicists improve their knowledge of our profession. To fulfill this role, SEG organizes conferences, workshops, lecture tours, training, and publishes technical and case study papers. I have been a member of the Society since the late 1990s and will continue to promote this important role of SEG. I am honored to serve the geophysics community through SEG and am looking forward to being a proactive promoter of SEG’s goals.

Brandy Hawkins is a geoscientist and passionate professional with a track record of innovative solutions, successful collaboration, and perseverance under pressure. Her composed nature has allowed for successful results during challenging situations. Her early experience in leadership includes being chair of the employee survey committee at St. John Medical Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, providing recommendations to the board for resolutions of employee concerns.

Hawkins attended Oklahoma State University (OSU) for a BS and MS in geology with geophysics emphasis. Her passion for SEG began as a student, where she facilitated the first geophysical exhibit, student chapter, and geophysical field camp at Boone Pickens School of Geology at OSU. Her continued affiliation with SEG led to other opportunities for leadership and contribution. She was cochair and chair of the Emerging Professionals International Committee (2014–2017), chair of the SEG–AAPG Cooperation Committee (2016–2019), technical program chair for the 2017 Annual Meeting, and member of the 2018 Professional Development Task Force. Hawkins is currently vice chair of the Health, Safety, Security, and Environment Committee.

Her professional industry experience as a geophysicist while working at SM Energy includes leading and supporting team supervision of a range of technical projects from 5D interpolated seismic reprocessing and prestack stochastic seismic inversion to microseismic acquisition and processing. Her personal contributions led to implementing seismic well planning in structurally complex areas utilizing seismic reflection and seismic inversion products that resulted in increased efficiencies and an internal company presentation award. Her core focus is seismic interpretation and structural geology. Hawkins is currently scheduled to present an oral session on her graduate work at the 2020 AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition titled, “A listric model of the Naga thrust and fold belt, Assam, India.”

Position Statement
SEG has played an important role for applied geophysics in the world by providing direction, reliable information, and a place for collaboration. The time has never been more vital that SEG’s position remain a strong place in the future for geophysicists.

SEG has influenced and invested in my professional development. It is an honor to be nominated as director at large for this organization and community. I am committed to contributing toward the continued relevance and success of SEG.

I believe having a strategic vision within a rapidly changing world is important. Understanding the changing demographic of geophysicists and role of geophysics in the world will play a pivotal part of SEG’s global footprint, membership retention, and future success. Recent events of incredibly low commodity prices and pandemically induced social distancing have placed emphasis on many points, especially membership and connection. Connection is crucial for membership retention, engagement of early- and mid-career professionals, and growth. SEG has provided avenues for me to connect with many people globally. I would like to support SEG’s current and new initiatives by:

• fostering membership retention.
• growing intersociety collaboration.
• promoting global representation (social media and interactive applications).
• promoting utilization and improving access of member benefits.
• encouraging engagement by early- and mid-career professionals.
• providing a voice for underrepresented members.

Patrice N. Mahob holds an MS (1997) and a PhD (2001) in geophysics from the University of Oklahoma. His competencies encompass 2D/3D integrated seismic interpretation, prospect generation and evaluation, seismic attribute analysis, salt velocity model building and interpretation, reservoir characterization, seismic modeling, seismic processing, and seismic quantitative interpretation. Mahob has hands-on experience in geoscience, training, and consulting. He has worked on many sedimentary basins ranging from Alaska, to the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, to onshore Oklahoma. This includes the West Nile Delta, Gulf of Gabès, Niger Delta, Gulf of Papua, and the Gulf of Guinea. He has worked in areas varying from gas to oil and from deep marine turbidite plays to tight gas sands. He has worked with oil and gas companies including Chevron Overseas Petroleum (1997–1998), BP Exploration (2001–2003), BP America Production Company (2003 –2008), BG Group (2008–2014), and Tullow Oil (2014–2018). In addition, Mahob authored and coauthored many papers and expanded abstracts. In 2018, Mahob founded Jacob Geophysical Inc. and is currently a principal geophysicist with Springfield E&P. He is an Active member of SEG and is also a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers, and NABG.

Tracy J. Stark can best be described as a consultant with a research habit. He prefers to take on projects that require, at least in part, the creation of a new approach or technique to solve. He started his career with a 10-year stint at Exxon Production Research Lab in Houston after receiving his BS (1979) and PhD (1986) in geological sciences (geophysics option) from the University of Texas at Austin under the guidance of Milo Backus. At Exxon, he worked on the direct hydrocarbon detection team before creating the surface slice method for 3D seismic interpretation. He was one of three founding members of Exxon’s self-directed visualization team that constructed their blue room for visualization. In 1996, he moved to ARCO’s research lab, helping design and program their two generations of immersive visualization environments. In 2000, he founded STARK Research, where he created techniques to build age volumes and associated wheeler volumes, as well as new spectral decomposition, frequency enhancement, and other interpretation techniques. He has volunteered for SEG in a variety of ways during his career. Some highlights include that he served on the editorial board of Interpretation, was an editorial board member of The Leading Edge, was technical program chair for the 2008 Annual Meeting, and was a coorganizer of many postconvention and summer research workshops. He is also an honorary life member and past president of the Dallas Geophysical Society.

Sarah Gach is a geophysical specialist with EOG Resources in Denver, Colorado, working on development and exploration projects in the Rocky Mountains. Prior to EOG, she was a senior geophysicist with Ultra Petroleum, where she worked on projects from the Green River, Appalachian, and Uinta basins. She also has experience in the North American Magnetic Database at the U.S Geological Survey and in Gulf of Mexico gravity modeling at Marathon. She received a BS in geophysical engineering (2002) and an MS in geophysics (2005) from the Colorado School of Mines. Her interests include geophysical and geologic integration, gravity and magnetics, and geoscience outreach. She is a member of SEG and has served as the chair/cochair of the Applied Science Education Program for Annual Meetings in Denver. She is also a member of the Denver Geophysical Society, where she volunteers on the Student Challenge Bowl outreach committee and 3D seismic symposium committee.

Doug Schmitt is the Stephen and Karen Brand Professor of Unconventional Resources in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University. He is also a Professor Emeritus at the University of Alberta. Schmitt obtained a BS in physics from the University of Lethbridge and a PhD in geophysics from the California Institute of Technology. His experience includes being an exploration geophysicist for Texaco, a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford, and a visiting researcher at Geophysikalisches Institute Uni Karlsruhe and at Australian National University’s Research School of Earth Sciences. His research interests are rock physics and mechanics, crustal stress determination, borehole seismology, and scientific drilling. Schmitt has been involved with more than a dozen drilling projects on six continents. He currently serves as an editor for the Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth and as an academic examiner for the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta. He has been a member of SEG since 1980.

Rachel Newrick is an exploration geophysicist working and teaching internationally with a focus on seismic interpretation. She completed a BS in geology and a BS Honors in geophysics at Victoria University of Wellington and a PhD in exploration seismology at the University of Calgary. During her career, Newrick has worked as a summer student/researcher for BHP (Melbourne), Occidental Petroleum (Houston), ExxonMobil (Houston), and Veritas (Calgary). She has worked full time for Nexen (Calgary and London) and Cairn Energy (Edinburgh). She is now based in Alberta, Canada, with Racian Ventures and is also an instructor with RPS-Nautilus, teaching a variety of seismic interpretation courses internationally. Newrick is coauthor of the SEG volume Fundamentals of Geophysical Interpretation with Larry Lines, a contributor to two 52 Things books, and has presented at a variety of conferences and technical luncheons. An SEG member since 1999, she has volunteered as conference session chairperson, presented numerous papers, reviewed Interpretation papers, served on the Field Camps Committee for four years (chair from 2011 to 2013), and was the District 5 representative from 2019 to 2020. Newrick is a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers, the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta, and Canadian SEG, serving as vice president, president, and past president (2014–2017). Newrick currently serves as president-elect of the Canadian Federation of Earth Sciences and will serve as president in 2021.

Ana Curcio simultaneously earned an MS in physics and an MS in geodetic-geophysical engineering from the University of Buenos Aires. She is currently obtaining a PhD from the same university. In addition, she earned a specialization in oil and gas production from the Technological Institute of Buenos Aires. Curcio has worked for Schlumberger Brazil, Pan American Energy, and Petrobras. Currently, she is a geophysical advisor for lithium/oil exploration projects that include seisimic and  electrical/electromagnetics/gravity geophysical prospection. Her main area of interest is the integration of seismic and electromagnetics, in particular the applications for conventional/unconventional reservoir monitoring, and elastic and electrical anisotropy. Curcio is an Active Member of SEG, chair of the SEG Latin America Regional Advisory Committee, and District 6 representative. She is involved in SEAM and in the organization of Business of Applied Geophysics plenary sessions at the SEG Annual Meeting. She has served as an SEG Council representative and as global cochair and chair of the 2019 Annual Meeting’s technical program. Curcio is also a member of the board of directors of the Argentinean Association of Petroleum Geologists and Geophysicists. In addition, she is an International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy division VI committee member.

Anton Bogrash is a graduate research assistant at the Centre for Computational Geostatistics at the University of Alberta (UofA). He is also a senior geophysicist on education leave at Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS). At UofA, he is researching higher-order geostatistical model applications for reservoir property estimation within the geophysical inverse problem framework.

Bogrash received his BS in hydrogeology and engineering geology (2010) and an MS in petroleum geoscience (2012) from UofA. He won the Schlumberger Scholarship Award in 2011. Bogrash joined PGS Reservoir in Moscow in 2011 as an intern and worked on seismic interpretation projects. In 2012, he transferred to onboard processing to work on seismic vessels across the globe. His efforts revolved around raw seismic data QC, creation and validation of dual-sensor acquisition deliverables, and full-integrity processing stages and fast-track imaging. Bogrash’s research interests include broadband seismic and uncertainty quantification. He is a member of SEG and the International Association for Mathematical Geosciences.

Horst Rüter is president of HarbourDom Consulting in Dortmund, Germany. Previously, he spent 32 years as head of the Geophysics Department of Deutsche Montan Technology. He nurtured the growth of the organization from a small research group to one of Germany’s most important private geophysical contractors. During that time, he was responsible for more than 100 research projects for international public and commercial agencies and for the mining and oil and gas industry. He contributed significantly to the development of 3D seismic methods from 1975 onward. He holds patents on seismic instrumentation and on specific logging instruments. His emphasis has been on integrating geophysical techniques into mining and borehole applications. Rüter holds a PhD from Ruhr-University in Bochum, where he is a part-time professor. He is a member of many professional societies and is part of several editorial boards and professional steering groups. He was president of the German Geophysical Society and the German Geothermal Association. Presently, he serves as chief scientist for the German Geothermal Association. Rüter is widely published and wrote a textbook on in-seam seismic. He received SEG’s Special Commendation Award in 2001 and the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers’ Conrad Schlumberger Award in 2005 for taking geophysics beyond its boundaries.

Uche Irene Aigbokhai is an operations geophysicist with Shell Petroleum Development Company. She studied at the University of Jos and St. Louis College in Jos. After graduation, she interned with the National Center for Remote Sensing. She worked for seven years as a seismic processing geophysicist and for four years as an operations geophysicist. She has experience in land, swamp, and marine operations in Nigeria and Oman. Aigbokhai is an Active Member of SEG and participates in the SEG Women’s Network Committee. She is also a member of the Nigeria Association of Petroleum Explorationists, Council of Nigerian Mining Engineers and Geoscientists, and Nigerian Mining and Geosciences Society. She has authored and coauthored several technical papers.

Sankhadip Bhattacharya received an M.S in Applied Geology from Jadavpur University in 2008 and is currently pursuing a Ph.D from the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee in the field of Carbonate Diagenesis and it’s relationship with High-Resolution Sequence Stratigraphy. He has more than 11 years of professional experience as a Petroleum Geologist with India’s National Oil Company. His interests include Seismic-based Sequence Stratigraphic analysis, Prospect generation, Techno-Economic evaluation and Reservoir Characterization. Bhattacharya is an Active Member of SEG, AAPG, APG, GSL, WEC and is motivated to give back to the Society. He has volunteered in many capacities for SEG, like- EPIC coordinator for India, EVOLVE mentoring, Global Chair NSTS, Book Review Committee, Membership Committee etc.  He is also a Young Professional Leader and Student Council member of the AAPG Asia Pacific Section. He has been nominated as the Future Energy Leader for the World Energy Council in India. Bhattacharya has published a number of technical papers and has reviewed technical papers for Springer and Elsevier.

Yang Liu is a professor at the China University of Petroleum Beijing (CUPB). He received a BS in exploration geophysics from the Jianghan Petroleum Institute in 1993 and a PhD in applied geophysics from CUPB in 1998. He joined CUPB in 1998 and was promoted to professor in 2006. From 2008 to 2009, he was a visiting scholar for the University of Texas at Austin. His research interests include seismic modeling, migration, inversion, and multicomponent seismic. He received an SEG scholarship (1996–1998) and the Fu Chengyi Youth Science and Technology Award from the Chinese Geophysical Society (1999). He is a member of SEG and the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers. Liu serves on the SEG China Advisory Committee, SEG Research Committee, and SEG Committee on University and Student Programs. In addition, he is an associate editor of Geophysics.

Ahmad Riza Ghazali received a degree in geophysics from the University of Leicester (1998) and a PhD in geophysics from Delft University of Technology (2011). He championed and supervised various technology projects for PETRONAS, especially in the subjects of subsurface imaging and reservoir characterization. He serves on the Industry Advisory Panel for the Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS. Ghazali is a member of the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers and SEG.