Ocean Leadership will organize a symposium, the Marine Geoscience Leadership Initiative (MGLI) intended to draw the science discussion and professional development elements from those of previously held dissertation symposia, such as DISCO, PODS, DIALOG, etc. Applicants may be from any subfield of marine geology and marine geophysics. The symposium participants could be sedimentary geologists, geochemists, marine geophysicists, microbiologists, marine seismologists, paleooceanographers, tectonophysicists, volcanologists, hydrogeologists, or igneous petrologists, A selection panel will be formed and charged with selecting scientists on the cutting-edge of their fields, involved in compelling research, and who want to broaden their view of how science interacts with policy, the media, and the public. The symposium will be limited to 25 early career researchers, with invitation to participate being a sign of high achievement. The group will be large enough to have several representatives from each discipline, yet small enough to enable close relationships and form a cohort. Special attention will be paid to diversity with efforts included in the planning and marketing of the program to attract under-represented groups from the U.S. The symposium will also be open to scientists from outside the U.S. (approximately 20%). Broader Impacts The goal of the symposium is to increase the effectiveness of early career cientists as they enter the community of marine geoscientists. Through targeted training in skills that extend beyond the classroom and laboratory, these early career researchers can become leaders in their communities and contribute to a geoscience-literate public. Participants will be inspired to become involved in science planning and speaking with the media and with policy makers, further expanding the impact of the symposium.
