NSF
International Science and Education Advisory Committee Meeting
14-15 March 2013
Notes (by Murday, )
1. Dr. David Stoner, Deputy Director, Office of International and Integrative Activities (OIIA), NSF
The Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE) and Office of Integrative Activities (OIA) are in the process of merging into the Office of International and Integrative Activities (OIIA), with Dr. Wanda E. Ward heading the new office.
He noted that the Assistant Directors for NSF’s Geological Sciences (GEO), Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) and Engineering(ENG)Directorates had changed recently and Social, Behavioral and Economics (SBE) will change this summer. OIIA will reach out to inform the new Directors.
Dr. Suresh, the departing NSF Director, announced the Graduate Research Opportunity Worldwide (GROW) program at the December National Science Board meeting. GROW is a partnership between NSF and international funding agencies to provide NSF Graduate Research Fellows with expanded opportunities to enhance professional development through research collaborations at top-caliber science and engineering research sites overseas. Some seventy applications have already been received. Dr. Graham Harrison is the NSF point of contact. Program details at:
The agenda for the next meeting of the Global Research Council will include research integrity principles and open access to publications/data. Initiated by Dr. Suresh, the Global Research Council is a virtual organization, comprised of the heads of science and engineering funding agencies from around the world, dedicated to promoting the sharing of data and best practices for high-quality collaboration among funding agencies worldwide.
Details can be found at:
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requested the elimination of NSF’s OISE to save money by eliminating programs. NSF requested a year to assess the consequences (and potentially contravene since lose in focus on International interactions may not make sense at this point in history). Dr. John Tsapogasis leading that effort, with a draft report due in April.
2. Dr. Gail McClure, Senior Advisor in Education and Human Resources (EHR)She heads a working group in EHR that looks at international opportunities. Approximately 1 in 5 of EHR projects have an international participant.
3. Dr. Kevin Thompson, Division of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure (ACI,formerly the Office of Cyberinfrastructure) in the Computer and Information Sciences Directorate. He spoke to the progress toward a 100 Gbit/sec global network by the end of the decade.
4. Dr. Rathindra (Babu) DasGupta, Industry/University Cooperative Research (I/UCRC).
He spoke the incorporation of International collaborations in the IUCRC program. Supplemental funding from OISE has been an important contribution.