The Society has a new president, Nick Rogers. After introducing his first public lecture in Burlington House, I stole Nick away for a quick coffee. Here’s what I learned about the man that will be at the helm of the Society for the next two years.
Nick grew up in Hertfordshire and attended a small church school, where he was indoctrinated in the bible. Home was a farm labourer’s cottage with an outside chemical toilet that was, according to his brother, haunted by the Holy Spirit. Both of his parents left school aged 14, his father to begin a carpentry apprenticeship and his mother to enrol in office work, so Nick was the first in his family to attend university. He began his geoscience training in London, obtaining a first degree in geology with chemistry from Bedford College.
Hidden layers
For as long as he can recall, Nick has been intrigued by what the Earth is made of, especially the deep and hidden layers. He is continually amazed that we have access to samples of the mantle and can handle a piece of peridotite that has been subjected to episodes of melting and mantle convection. Pursuing this fascination, Nick completed a Master’s in geochemistry at the University of Leeds and a Ph.D. at Imperial College, investigating the trace element contents of kimberlites and xenoliths to understand the composition and evolution of the continental mantle and lower crust.
After a NERC fellowship at Imperial and the Open University in which he had his first foray into isotope geochemistry, Nick began his professional career in 1983 as a research technician at the OU. He ran the neutron activation laboratory—apparently sparking rumours of a link between radiation exposure and hair loss—and continuing his research in trace element and isotope geochemistry. Over the next 35 years, Nick gradually climbed the promotion ladder, going on to become the Head of Department, and subsequently Associate Dean and Science Programme Director in the Science Faculty. Nick supervised over 20 Ph.D. students, published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers and has an H-index greater than 40. He somehow also managed to find time to edit The Journal of the Geological Society, serve on Council as Publications Secretary and Chair of the Education Committee, and latterly to be a regular member of the NERC grant-review panel. Now an emeritus professor, Nick caps off a successful career with his presidency.
Service
Nick talked warmly of the important role the Geological Society plays in supporting geoscientists throughout their career: “I have always found that my activity with the Society has complemented my career at the OU, giving me the experience and confidence to apply for more responsible roles in my day job.
“I take the Society’s strap line of ‘service to science, profession and society’ seriously, with the emphasis on service. I used to recoil from that word, but as my career has developed I now see that it is only by serving organisations—sometimes as a leader, as a team member or just an individual—that I reap any satisfaction from professional activity.”
We touched on the
Society’s ten-year strategy and its emphasis on scientific excellence, integrity and equality, as well as social and environmental sustainability and responsibility. Many of the goals mirror those of the previous ten-year strategy, because these issues remain so relevant. “My aim is to lead the Society in line with those values, which are close to my own. I have no particular or personal agenda, but I would like to see the Society improve its relationship with the academic community. We already serve that sector through scientific meetings and publications but can improve in areas of degree accreditation and facilitating links with industry. There is a multiplicity of paths from school through university and on to professional life, and a key role of the Society is to facilitate that journey for each and every geologist. The Society is uniquely positioned to connect education, research, industry and policy, and with the increasing emphasis on skills in higher education that role is more important than ever.”
Future
Of course, one issue that looms like a black cloud over the Society is the uncertainty surrounding the lease of Burlington House. Nick would love to secure the lease during his presidency, but given the two-year time constraint of the role, it’s probably more realistic to aim for keeping the lease on track, with the intention of securing it within the next few years: “A common criticism of the Society is the level of fellowship fees and the maintenance of the building is sometimes unfairly cited as a reason for those fees. The society undertakes a multiplicity of activities that are required by the charities commission to be financially sustainable and the fees are carefully set at a level to ensure that outcome. Consequently, we need to be able to secure our tenancy of Burlington House on favourable terms to avoid the financial burden of excessive rent increases or, even worse, the operational disruption of being forced to move out.”
Nick is keen to see how the dynamic of the Society changes in the coming years, given the recent influx of new senior staff. Acknowledging the major achievements of outgoing staff members, he said that “new colleagues bring in fresh ideas and will take the Society in new and interesting directions”. The increase in diversity at senior levels is important, but Nick stressed that the primary focus will always be on excellent science, which is exemplified with the thematic years—currently ‘resources’ and ‘carbon’ for 2019.
I was chiefly struck by the gratitude Nick expressed—he feels indebted to the many institutions that have supported him during his career, and in particular to the Open University for the training and resources they provided. He emphasised how important it to remember the communities and institutions that sustain us through our careers and help catapult us to where we are. Nick has a strong desire to give back to the geoscience community and feels his presidency is a chance to pay back an organisation that has served him well and whose values he shares.
Amy Whitchurch (Editor)