Future Directions for the National Science Foundation's Arctic Natural Sciences Program (1998) / Chapter Skim
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5 Conclusions and Recommendations
5 Conclusions and Recommendations
Pages 40-50
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From page 40... ...
personnel and by getting input from review panels established specifically to consider proposals from a multidisciplinary perspective. Better internal communications are prerequisites for a unified Arctic Section.
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From page 41... ...
The solution lies primarily in improved management rather than in restructuring or redefining the program. Recommendations · To best reflect the broad purpose of the ANS program within the OPP context, OPP should adopt the following mission statement for the ANS program: "The mission of the Arctic Natural Sciences program is to fund cutting-edge research dealing with any aspect of the Arctic's atmospheric, terrestrial, and marine systems.
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From page 42... ...
The spheres would be defined as follows: Atmospheric systems would include studies of the troposphere, stratosphere, ionosphere, and space physics, with the latter including physical and chemical studies from the Earth's surface to the sun, surface exchange processes, and interactions between the biosphere and atmosphere. Terrestrial systems would include studies of terrestrial biology and ecology; glaciology (including glaciers, ice sheets, snow, and permafrost)
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From page 43... ...
The Arctic Section Head provides leadership to the entire Arctic Section, but because of the key role and diversity of the ANS program he or she should serve more directly as the lead supervisor overseeing the ANS program staff and continually reassessing the balance, interactions, cooperation, and resource partitioning among the spheres. If the Arctic Section head position remains one filled by rotating employees, it must continue to be someone of significant authority.
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From page 44... ...
But other mechanisms can be incorporated into the decision-making process to, in essence, enlarge the program manager's view and help identify high-priority research projects. Setting priorities should involve input from at least three groups: NSF management, to be sure that the priorities selected support broader agency goals and strategic planning; the scientific communities who will be requesting funds, to be sure that the priorities selected represent what they believe are the most important and cutting-edge issues; and, finally, representatives of related research programs and agencies, to be sure there is coordination of effort and to limit duplication of effort.
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From page 45... ...
The panel should include two members of the research community from each sphere plus representatives of the Arctic Affiliates (that is, all NSF program managers whose portfolios include arctic research projects and selected representatives from other federal agencies supporting arctic research)
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From page 46... ...
The objectives of such a workshop would be: to give the ANS program managers and the head of the Arctic Section direct input from the research community regarding their sense of future research goals within each of the three spheres and the links between them; and to discuss the current range of ad hoc international research activities and connections that exist within the research community and how these links might be formalized and strengthened. A workshop might also explore the ongoing issue of logistics support and, in particular, the potential impacts of the new Coast Guard ship, USCGC Healy, on the ANS program.
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From page 47... ...
. ANS staff should facilitate and give careful consideration to research that proposes to gather data of use to the international arctic science community and that involves collaboration with international partners.
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From page 48... ...
But improved communication and increased informal interaction among key staff are needed in order to establish a foundation for real cooperation including, perhaps, involvement of appropriate agency personnel as Arctic Affiliates involved in aspects of the review process. · ANS program staff should take steps to improve communication with other NSF units with relevant programs, such as the Earth System History program.
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From page 49... ...
Know what governmental and commercial facilities are available for providing logistics support and help investigators take advantage of this support. Besides acting as a liaison with the Coast Guard and Navy for ship support, the office could know what other science aircraft and support are available from the Department of Defense, Forest Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and other branches of the National Science Foundation.
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From page 50... ...
Recommendation · If it does not already exist, OPP should develop an organized, workable database containing appropriate proposal information so it can be an accessible and useful resource to staff, supervisors, and others to monitor the ANS program as it evolves. If such a system already exists, ANS program data should be entered so that over time a useful body of information is accumulated that will hold lessons about program strengths and weaknesses and guide future decisionmakers.
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