POGO message

Later this month, it will have been exactly four years since the inaugural meeƟ ng which led to the birth of NANO. CreaƟ ng and developing NANO into what it is today has been a very rewarding part of my job, for many reasons. It has brought the same saƟ sfacƟ on as growing an orchid: knowing how diffi cult they are to keep alive, it is all the more rewarding to see the beauƟ ful fl owers blossom Ɵ me and Ɵ me again, and even to witness the birth of a keiki -the Hawaiian word for baby- growing halfway up the stem! Like an orchid, NANO also needs careful aƩ enƟ on, watering and feeding on a regular basis, but I have had a wonderful support team to help with this “maintenance”: NANO Organisers and alumni Lica Krug and Olga Shatova, who are responsible for updaƟ ng the alumni database and website and producing the newsleƩ er, as well as coming up with new and original ideas for developing the network and engaging the members; POGO ScienƟfi c Coordinator Vikki Cheung, who plays a major role in the coordinaƟ on of NANO projects and meeƟ ngs as well as in the fi nancial administraƟ on, with valuable support from POGO AdministraƟ ve Assistant Laura Ruff oni. This month also marks the end of an era for the POGO Secretariat, with Shubha Sathyendranath stepping down from the Secretariat aŌ er 15 years of dedicaƟ on and hard work, having been the fi rst ExecuƟ ve Director of POGO (1999-2008). At the same Ɵ me, Trevor also stepped down as ExecuƟ ve Director and handed over to me on 1 st October 2014. He will stay on, as Shubha did, in an advisory role, for a transiƟ on period. Many of you will have been taught by Trevor and Shubha, who are both experts in the fi eld of ocean colour remote sensing and ocean opƟ cs, and dedicated to training the next generaƟ on. There are even several “generaƟ ons” of their trainees within NANO, in the sense that their earlier students now have students of their own, who have also benefi ted from NF-POGO training and joined NANO. Trevor has recently been awarded a Jawaharlal Nehru Science Fellowship –named aŌ er India’s fi rst prime minister –to spend 12 months, spread over 3 years, conducƟ ng research in India. During that Ɵ me, Trevor and Shubha will conƟ nue to train and mentor young scienƟ sts in India. Needless to say Trevor and Shubha are very passionate about NANO and I’m sure they will conƟ nue to follow and support our progress. On behalf of POGO and NANO, I wish them all the very best as they conƟ nue their journey, and thank them for everything they have done to lay the solid foundaƟ ons on which NANO can conƟ nue to grow and have many more keiki -in the form of research and outreach projects, newsleƩ ers, calendars, watches and who knows what else…

NANO Watch It’s always Ɵ me to celebrate!

On the occasion of the 3 rd anniversary of NANO, we have designed a watch with the kind contribuƟ on and lovely drawings from NANO Friend Dr Heather Bouman, lecturer in Marine Biogeochemistry, University of Oxford. The watches produced will be used for outreach and educaƟ onal purposes.