Paul Bauman discusses the inaugural Global Sustainability Lecture series, "A Strategy for Improving Rural Water Supply Development in Sub-Saharan Africa." Paul highlights how water impacts all 17 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. He outlines the impact of two billion people living with water stress and how it could reach over five billion in the next ten years. Paul also shares why every geoscientist needs to be aware of this crisis, how it impacts their work, and what actions to take to address the issue. This is an inspiring, humbling, and necessary conversation.

Professors Kirsten Nicholson and Klaus Neumann lead a Geoscientists without Borders (GWB) project to find safe drinking water for two communities in the Sagarmatha National Park, Nepal. In this episode, you hear exclusively from Kirsten and Klaus as they take you on a journey from discovering the need for this project to what they hope they will contribute to these communities. This is a powerful example of the significant contribution geoscientists can make when focused on a meaningful project for a local community.

Heather Bedle and Chris Garneau explore public misperceptions of geohazards, the power of experiencing earthquakes, and ways to improve scientific communication with the public. This episode breaks down geohazards and their impact on the public and provides actionable steps for geoscientists to study geohazards better and discuss their work with others.

Cara Hunter and Teresa Santana discuss the value and importance of mentoring for geoscientists. They explain the need for Mentoring365, explore networking in 2023, and offer tips for first-time mentors and mentees. Cara and Teresa also elaborate on the two-way aspect of mentorship and how any professional can build their network. The conversation concludes with a reflection on how mentorship has influenced their career and the value of engaging as a mentor. 

This is the first special section dedicated to planetary geophysics in the 40-year history of The Leading Edge. Alexander Braun highlights the differences geophysicists should consider when applying their skills to planetary geophysics and the types of geophysical tools and techniques that work well on other planets. He also explains why Jurassic Park gives a poor impression of geophysics and how geophysical techniques on the moon helped turtles on Earth. This fun and engaging conversation will offer insight to scientists working in any environment.

Steve Darnell discusses how digital transformation improves business processes in-depth. He emphasizes the importance of cybersecurity, how to start the digitalization process, and highlights the common obstacles companies face when embracing digital transformation. He also comments on the common misperceptions and the hidden benefits of embracing digital advancements. This conversation on digital transformation connects to all parts of the oil and gas workflow and showcases the value proposition for companies. 

Bill Abriel (SEG Co-Chair) and George Koperna (SPE Co-Chair) preview Energy in Data 2022 - How to Solve Data Challenges Without Breaking Your Systems or Your Budget. In this helpful and insightful conversation, Bill and George highlight how the unique format will help participants discover solutions to their use cases, eloquently highlight the business value for data, discuss a few of the challenges applied geophysicists and petroleum engineers face when working with data, and much more. This is the episode for you if you want a quick tour to understand why data matters and how it can benefit your organization.

Carlos Calderón-Macías holistically explores the near-surface scattering problem in this conversation with host Andrew Geary. He highlights ways to understand the problem better and why using the noise as signal approach should be further developed. He also explores the differences in the scattered waves for land, ocean-bottom, and near-surface data. Carlos shares what inspired this lecture, the three groups perfect for this talk, and the questions he hopes attendees will ask themselves. Not only does this conversation highlight the near-surface scattering problem, but it showcases general approaches for solving any geophysical problem.

Tim Johnson discusses his article in August's The Leading Edge about real-time electrical resistivity tomography (ERT). Tim presents a framework for autonomous, real-time electrical imaging. He also shares two case studies of the framework in action and potential areas of development for this work. This forward-looking conversation utilizes machine learning and the latest electrical geophysical instrumentation to highlight what the future can be for hydrogeophysics.

Roel Snieder discusses his 2022 SEG-AAPG Distinguished Lecture, "Measuring variations in the seismic velocity as a diagnostic of rock damage and healing." Roel shows surprisingly that the seismic velocity is not constant at all. It varies with the seasons, temperature, precipitation, and ground shaking. He also discusses how logarithmic healing in rocks is a widespread behavior that is akin in its generality to the Gutenberg-Richter law. Roel also provides insights into the role of spirituality in science and offers actionable tips on preventing burnout. This is a wide-ranging conversation with surprising insights into rocks, as well as how to live a successful life.