The Committee on Geological and Geotechnical Engineering (COGGE) is the focal point within the Board on Earth Sciences and Resources at the National Academies for scientific, technical, and public-policy issues pertaining to the engineering applications of Earth Sciences. The committee's scope encompasses Earth processes and materials, including the mechanics of rock and soil, and focuses on safe and responsible human development, risk assessment, and mitigation of natural anthropogenic hazards. The committee organizes and oversees studies: 1) to identify, investigate, and report on questions relating to geological and geotechnical engineering to government, industry, academia, and the public; 2) to provide scientific and technical information to inform public policy on geological and geotechnical engineering issues; 3) to identify new technologies and potential applications; and, 4) to promote the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge. In addition, the committee provides a forum for discussion among academic and professional groups, government agencies, and private industry to enhance national and international cooperation and exchange of information.
COGGE is the only intellectual organization within the Washington, DC area dedicated to increasing awareness of the importance of geological and geotechnical engineering in addressing societal needs, and to developing and overseeing unbiased, peer reviewed consensus studies conducted by ad hoc committees of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on topics relevant to the geological and geotechnical engineering communities. Through public meetings, webinars, and those consensus studies, COGGE (1) enhances research and education infrastructure by identifying strategies for collaboration among geotechnical and other and other engineering and scientific communities (including the social sciences); (2) promotes capacity building through interaction with academics, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers; (3) improves scientific and technological understanding through reviewed reports for broad dissemination; (4) benefits society by providing the best science and engineering information to COGGE sponsors, the broader geotechnical engineering community, decision makers in the private and public sectors, and the general public.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
