Voting will open on 1 June and close on 1 July 2021

Biography

Lee Slater, distinguished professor and Henry Rutgers professor in geophysics at Rutgers University Newark, is an internationally recognized expert in near surface geophysics and hydrogeophysics. He has published extensively, including 150 papers in peer-reviewed international journals of hydrogeology and geophysics. Lee has served as principal investigator on multiple research and technology demonstration projects funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. National Parks Service, and the National Science Foundation. He has also served in prominent leadership roles in the academic geophysical community, including chair of the Near Surface Geophysics Focus Group of the American Geophysical Union (AGU), chair of the AGU Hydrogeophysics Technical Committee and president of the Environmental and Engineering Geophysical Society (EEGS). Lee currently serves as associate editor of Water Resources Research (WRR) and he recently edited a new volume on Near Surface Geophysics published in the 2nd Edition of the Treatise on Geophysics, part of the Elsevier Major International Reference series. Lee has served on multiple advisory boards for large interdisciplinary hydrogeological research projects in Europe. He was the recipient of the 2013 Harold B. Mooney award of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG). His numerous PhD graduates have mostly gone onto academic positions and are now making their own contributions to advancing research in hydrogeophysics. In 2018 Lee was elected Fellow of the American Geophysical Union (AGU), with the citation: "for visionary experimentation in near surface geophysics that has advanced understanding of subsurface hydrogeological and biogeochemical processes."

Position statement

Now more than ever, geophysical observations of the near surface Earth are needed to protect our resources and ecosystems and to understand the impacts of climate change on hydrological, biogeochemical, and geomorphological processes. The Near Surface Technical Section (NSTS) of the society represents the community of scientists, engineers, and students with the skillsets and knowledge needed to respond to this challenge. With looming changes to energy policy, the tendency to overlook the near surface in favor of imaging deeper exploration targets no longer best represents the interests of the society. It is thus critical to promote near surface geophysics, environmental geophysics, and hydrogeophysics within the society.

I hope to bring my experience from 25 years of interdisciplinary research in near surface geophysics and teaching to assist with advancing the role of NSTS in representing our community nationwide. If elected, I would also draw on my previous experiences in leadership positions in the Near Surface Section of the American Geophysical Union and the Environmental and Engineering Geophysical Society. I have recently been inspired by the commitment of early-career scientists and students to supporting and advancing the NSTS, and I would very much welcome an opportunity to work closely with and grow this next generation of near surface geophysicists.

Biography

Blair Schneider is an associate researcher and science outreach manager for the Kansas Geological Survey. Her research focuses on the use of near-surface geophysics for archaeological and forensic investigations. She is a past-president of the Association for Women Geoscientists (AWG) and the 2019-2020 chair of the Women's Network Committee for the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG). She has a PhD and M.S. in Geophysics from the University of Kansas and completed a postdoc in STEM Education at the University of Kansas Center for Teaching Excellence. She is also a co-PI of the ADVANCEGeo project and currently serves as an associate editor for the Journal of Environmental & Engineering Geophysics.

Position statement

I have been a member of the SEG near-surface geophysics community for several years now and truly enjoy the opportunities, networking, and friendships that have come out of this group! Over the past few years, I have been working to try and engage the archaeo-geophysics community to become more involved with the SEG Near-surface geophysics group by chairing technical sessions related to the topic. I also developed and led a post-convention workshop on using geophysical methods for archaeological and forensic research in 2019. I recently served as chair of the SEG Women’s Network Committee, so I am familiar with the structure and expectations of serving on an SEG committee. During my time as chair, I created a new resume review service that was free to all student and early-career members. In addition, I put together a panel discussion about careers in geophysics that was held in conjunction with the virtual Annual Meeting. Finally, I started a newsletter to keep our network engaged and up-to-date on our activities and events. I am excited to have the opportunity to work with the executive board of the SEG near-surface geophysics community.

Biography

EDUCATION:

• B.Sc.: GEOLOGY TECHNIQUES (University of Benin) - 2011
• M.Sc.: MINERAL EXPLORATION (University of Benin) - 2018
• Ph.D.: APPLIED GEOCHEMISTRY (University of Benin) (In View) - 2022

WORK:

Consultant Survey Hydro-Geophysicist (2018 till date): Engage in exploration and exploitation services for hydro-companies.

Lecturer (2015 till date): Lecturer at University of Benin, where I instruct students in Geophysics, Exploration & Mining Geology, Petrology and Marine Geology. As the Field Coordinator, I organize and coach students on geology field trips. I also supervise Project Students in their Final Year Project Work for quality research that would produce quality thesis that can be published in any refereed journal, anywhere in the world.

Trainee (2010): Involved with University of Benin Water Board where I was engaged with ground water exploration and exploitation. Also involved in pipe rehabilitation, repair and replacement, as well as in water treatment and distribution.

CERTIFICATIONS:

• Certificate Of Competence in Health, Safety, Security & Environment (HSE I, II & III) - MiTA
• Career Dev. & Personal Effectiveness Professional - Assoc. for Career Dev./ABS
• Human Resource Management - American Mgt. Assoc./ Akure Business School (ABS)
• Certified Associate in Project Management - Akure Business School (ABS)
• Practical First Aid (PFA I) - Nigerian Red Cross Society (NRCS)

MEMBERSHIP OF A PROFESSIONAL BODY:

• Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG)
• Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy And Petroleum (CIM)
• Nigerian Mining & Geosciences Society (NMGS)
• The Nigerian Association of Exploration Geophysicists (NAEG)
• International Medical Geology Association (IMGA)
• Nigerian Institute of Science Laboratory Scientists/Technologists (NISLTS)
• Nigeria Red Cross Society (NRCS)

SCHOLARLY SERVICE:

Reviewer for Journal of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences.

Position statement

SEG is experiencing a crucial change in the trend of her membership capacity to hoisting her flag to greater heights of influence, specifically in term of its focus on a more youthful and vibrant leadership. She needs to spread her tentacles globally via a more dynamic and technologically-advanced system that will connect SEG to the grassroot globally, endeavoring to make the world feel her impart by expanding the role of geophysics in meeting humanitarian challenges.

I am greatly humbled to be nominated for the position of Vice Chair, as it will serve as a platform for me, as a young geophysicist with a promising future, to engage my intellectual, technical, administrative, and natural endowment to provoking uncommon exploits in the SEG.

My goals for serving at the capacity of the Vice Chair include:

1. Assisting the Board chair in performing his/her duties and responsibilities and to always be available to perform the responsibilities of the Board chair during his/her absence or disability of the Board chair.
2. Providing constructive advice and support as required to the Board chair in all matters concerning the interests of SEG, especially in aspects of encouraging and engaging young geophysicists to take leading roles, engage with students at institutions where geosciences are offered, through workshops and seminars, and always looking for ways to see how to reach out to geophysics community around the world where SEG is not represented.
3. Since SEG has been a pivotal force in the geophysical industry since inception, I shall engage my technical and natural skills in supporting the chair and other committee members in reviewing the long-term goal and financing strategies of the Society by:
   1. working in close relationship with my chair and the Board in marshalling strategic plans and road map for acquisition growth that will improve our international outreach with the aim of accessing local talent worldwide.
   2. Support and assist the chair and the Board on due diligence, financing, technicalities, and negotiation matters, as required for the growth interest of SEG.
   3. Generally supporting activities relating to acquisition effectiveness, performance reviews and the wider, related landscape vision that will promulgate the image of SEG to the limelight, worldwide by promoting diversity in our nomination of candidates for SEG Honors and Awards via providing a fair-playing ground and infusing a dynamism into SEG governance by involving more early-career professionals.

Biography

Nadia Fantello earned her BS at Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina, in 2014 and her M.S. in Geophysics at the University of Wyoming in 2016. For her thesis work, she used ground penetrating radar to locate and quantify gas trapped as bubbles in lake ice. During that time, she published her thesis in GEOPHYSICS journal and presented her work at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) annual conference. After completing her M.S., Fantello worked for a year at the Department of Geology and Geophysics at the University of Wyoming under the supervision of her thesis advisor, Dr. Andrew Parsekian. During that time, she was in charge of collecting and processing electrical resistivity tomography and borehole nuclear magnetic resonance data. She is currently a staff geophysicist with S&ME, Inc.

Position statement

I am very excited about this opportunity. I believe I have the skills necessary to excel as a Vice-Chair of Committees, but I am also eager to learn new ones. Throughout my career, although short, I have been exposed to many different leadership roles: from leading field work to manage people in the field to mentoring younger staff. I am passionate about geophysics, and I firmly believe that multidisciplinary work is vital since it gives us the possibility of looking at a problem from different angles, so I am very excited to meet people who work in different geophysical areas. I love new challenges that take me out of my comfort zone, so I will be very pleased to serve as a Vice-Chairperson of Committees for the SEG NSG.

Biography

Morgan Sander-Olhoeft earned a Bachelor’s in geophysical engineering from the Colorado School of Mines in 2017. Since then she has worked for geophysical equipment manufacturers both as a part of the development team and the sales team. She is currently the ABEM business unit manager for the North American market working to develop additional business opportunities, increase market presence, and support customers. Additionally, she volunteers for the NSTS of SEG as the student program leader, the chair of the Summit on Drone Geophysics, and is co-chairing the SEG/AGU Hydrogeophysics special session at the 2021 SEG Annual Meeting.

Position statement

For the last two years I have volunteered on the Near Surface Technical Section (NSTS) leadership as the student program leader. In that time I have been in involved in the development of many new student activities both for Annual Meeting and throughout the rest of the year. During this time I have slowly gotten involved with other areas of the NSTS and would like to continue this work. Aside from the development of the near surface student program, I have been a regular and active member of the leadership, was an original co-chair for the Summit on Drone Geophysics, the first event of its kind for SEG’s NSTS, and I am currently co-chairing the SEG/AGU Hydrogeophysics special session for Annual Meeting.

In the Vice Chair of Committees position, I would like to continue supporting the growth of the NSTS. In this role I will provide support for the existing committee leaders and help recruit replacements for the positions that are currently vacant. I would also like to facilitate a discussion about the needs of the near surface community as it stands and make sure that we are representing all areas of interest within the NSTS committees either through existing committees or by helping to develop new ones as needed.

Biography

Dr. Elita Li joined the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the National University of Singapore as an assistant professor in 2016. Before coming to Singapore, Dr. Li did her postdoctoral research at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, holding a joint position in the Earth Resources Laboratory and the Department of Mathematics. Dr. Li received her Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Ggeophysics from Stanford University in 2014 and 2010, respectively. She obtained her B.S. degree in Information and Computational Science from China University of Petroleum, Beijing in 2008. At NUS, Elita’s research group works on geophysical applications in urban environments for smart city developments. By integrating ambient noise imaging and distributed sensor networks, the research efforts are focused on the development of a noninvasive, high-resolution, and real-time listening system to solve pressing urban challenges in space, water, and society. Elita was the recipient of the J. Clarence Karcher Award from SEG in 2018.

Position Statement

Earth's near surface (< 100 m) bears the most interactions between human society and the natural environment. Sustainable utilization of the near-surface space and resources is a challenging task for modern society, particularly for the emerging economy. Having been based in Singapore for the last five years, I have worked extensively with the near-surface community in China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and other Ssoutheast Asian countries. The opportunities in solving urban challenges in space, water, waste, and human activities are wide open. Serving as Gglobal cChair, I aspire to foster a collaborative community focusing on such pressing societal issues and aiming to provide intellectual support for the design and development of sustainable urban and near-surface environment.

Biography

Position Statement

We all know that SEG Near Surface Technical Section plays a vital and indispensable role in advancing and promoting applied geophysics' praxis. The increasing value of near-surface applications to investigate the outer part of the Earth's crust has shown the importance of understanding the near surface in the subsurface exploration of deep Earth since any physical accesses pass through the near surface. The research and education in applied geophysics I have been involved in tells us that the promotion of the rigorous science, technology, and professional practice of applied geophysics near the surface lies with us. The communication of theoretical and technological advances developments is essential to steer best practices of geophysical applications.

I would like to collaborate with the other members to focus and support the integration and interaction among the near-surface geophysical and engineering community. Our involvement will range in the areas of interest, i.e., geophysics, geotechnics, engineering geology, mining, geothermal investigation, environment, hydrogeology, archaeology, disaster mitigation, and many other near surface-related specialties for the growth of the international near-surface community and for inspiring the next generation to support the future in the community.