CAREER OPPORTUNITIES FOR GEOSCIENTISTS IN THE POLICY ARENA AND RELATED SECTORS (Invited Presentation)

Employment trends for geoscientists have historically been tied to the cyclic demand for energy resources, mineral commodities, and other natural resources. And while this relationship will likely continue, other issues with geologic considerations will likely drive the need for geoscientists, such as developing protocols for wise land use and development, and the exploration and protection of fresh water resources in a rapidly growing world. Moreover, the growing need to reduce societial risk from natural hazards enhanced by climate change while being confounded by societies' own choices would lead one to conclude that the injection of geoscience information into decision making may be more important now and in the near future than in any time in human history. Unfortunately, our political leaders are often woefully lacking in knowledge of earth science and engineering. For example, demographic data for members of the U.S. House in the 106^th Congress showed that only 10 of the 435 members (2.3%) claimed a previous occupation in science of engineering. As a result, members often rely highly on their staff, where people with science and engineering backgrounds are also woefully underrepresented. However, many universities are establishing science and policy programs or institutes where students with science backgrounds can receive training and experience in policy. The AAAS science & engineering fellowship program, and internships at Washington, DC-based NGO’s are examples of well-established programs that provide excellent policy experience, and often lead to challenging non-traditional career options for participants. Other opportunities exist as analysts and advisors in the commodity trading and insurance sectors, but often there are few programs that equip or expose geoscience students to these options. Geoscientists individually, and society as a whole would benefit greatly if career development options into non-traditional fields were more common and promoted. In this way, geoscientists could more routinely provide their valuable perspectives to policy makers, business interests, and society while exploring opportunities to land fulfilling careers in an arena where knowledge of the geosciences is critically needed.