PRESIDENT'S LETTER

Ongoing Business

My first experience with the American Society of Plant Biologists was attending one of its joint meetings with the Canadian Society of Plant Physiologists in Calgary, Canada, more than 30 years ago. I was a graduate student then, presenting my first paper at a scientific conference of this magnitude, and naturally was very nervous about my first encounter with many fellow plant biologists. Fast-forward in time, to another joint meeting with the Canadian society several weeks ago in Montreal, when I presided over the opening ceremony and chaired a symposium as president of ASPB. During the intervening three decades, I was not only fortunate enough to establish a career in research and teaching in plant biology, but also had the wonderful opportunity of attending many more ASPB meetings and participating in various functions of our Society. I truly appreciate the wide range of activities and opportunities ASPB offers, from education outreach to public affairs, from publication of highly acclaimed journals to organizing well-attended annual meetings. These efforts are always carried out in the true spirit of teamwork. In this last letter during my tenure as president, I would like to express sincere gratitude to those people who have been instrumental in making all these things happen. Also, during this transition period, I would like to take the opportunity to inform the ASPB membership at large about two important ongoing business issues.

The agenda of ASPB business is usually set by the Executive Committee, which consists of presidents, standing committee chairs, regional representatives, and elected members. The Executive Committee meets three times a year to discuss and decide on a wide range of issues, many of them brought forward by various standing committees. Every Executive Committee member deserves our gratitude, but in particular, I would like to point out that all the standing committee chairs work extremely hard with their respective committee members on important activities of the Society, such as membership, publications, public affairs, minority affairs, education, and so on. I have attended many individual standing committee meetings and have been thoroughly impressed with the level of dedication and innovation. At each meeting, practical solutions were generated to solve problems facing the Society. All our committee chairs deserve a special citation for their service to our Society. One of them, Gary Stacey, University of Missouri, who heads the Public Affairs Committee, is rotating off this year after long and distinguished service to ASPB. Gary worked diligently with a can-do mentality in promoting the interest of ASPB and plant science in general at various gatherings with key people in government and Congress. A big “Thank You” goes to Gary! We are also grateful for Judy Brusslan, who will rotate off as chair of the Women in Plant Biology Committee, and Alan Jones, who has completed his three years of service as an elected member of the Executive Committee.

The ASPB business agenda is mostly carried out by the 20-plus staff working in the headquarters office in Rockville, Maryland. The ASPB staff is organized in different sections, such as publications, public affairs, finance and administration, and meetings/marketing/membership, each headed by a director who reports to the executive director, Crispin Taylor. All the staff members deserve our heartfelt gratitude for their dedicated and reliable service that drives the engine of our Society. Last year, Crispin wore an additional hat as acting director of public affairs when that position was unexpectedly vacated due to illness. Crispin and Gary worked very hard together not only to keep our public affairs activities rolling, but to actually further expand our horizon in building additional contacts with several government agencies. Our sincere thanks go to Crispin for carrying out the extra responsibilities at a time of special need.

New initiatives are put forward each year by the ASPB leadership, and some of them may impact the Society for years to come. The two issues I would like to discuss in this letter as “Ongoing Business” are (1) the formation of a committee to study alternative business models for ASPB and (2) the continuous evolution of the Global Plant Council (GPC).

For years, ASPB has been able to support the gradual expansion of its portfolio of activities and services. This is primarily due to the surplus generated by our two successful journals, Plant Physiology and The Plant Cell. However, the recent government-led push for an Open Access/author-pays format in scientific publication will undoubtedly reduce the institutional subscription income generated by these two journals. Consequently, the current ASPB business model will eventually become unsustainable. In light of this concern, the leadership of ASPB has decided to form an ad hoc committee to study how we can best adjust and adapt to these new developments. The charges to this business development committee are to (1) define what fraction of the Society’s income should be reassigned from subscriptions to something else and over what time frame, (2) articulate a mechanism for soliciting and robustly and expeditiously assessing plausible new revenue-generating ideas that come to the fore, and (3) identify a process for promoting and developing the most promising products and services. The committee will be composed of experts from both within and outside ASPB with experience in scientific leadership and administration and in the publishing business. There is no doubt that recommendations made by this committee will have a far-reaching impact on future operations of ASPB. By the time this letter is published, this committee will be ready for action, and suggestions and comments from the ASPB membership at large will always be welcome.

As most of you know, the Global Plant Council (GPC) was formed last year in Hawaii as part of a historical and groundbreaking summit among more than a dozen major plant science societies around the world. The mission of the GPC is “to define and engage in coordinated strategies that impact the most critical issues facing humankind and to increase awareness of the central importance of plant science in solving these issues. Our shared vision and effort will enable more effective use of knowledge and resources, accelerating progress in solving the challenges of world hunger, energy, climate change, health and well-being, sustainability and environmental protection.” The second GPC meeting took place right before the Montréal meeting this summer and was hosted by the Canadian Society of Plant Physiologists. Mel Oliver, USDA/University of Missouri, was elected executive director. Since it was Mel’s original idea that eventually led to the formation of the GPC, it seems quite fitting that he will continue overseeing the operation of this budding organization. His vision and effort will undoubtedly help shape the direction of the GPC. Our hats are off to Mel for all he has been doing for the GPC. Around 30 plant science societies are now GPC members. A provisional executive committee was also formed, and the ASPB representative will have a seat on this governing body. Furthermore, an action plan was established, and ASPB will continue to actively participate in GPC functions for years to come.

Before closing, I would like to give very special thanks to Sally Assmann, Pennsylvania State University, the immediate past president, for her able leadership in guiding the Society over the past few years. Among her many accomplishments, she oversaw the major revamping of the ASPB website that was launched earlier this month, and she worked extremely hard to foster a dialogue between NIH and the plant science community. At the same time, please join me in welcoming Nick Carpita, Purdue University, to the presidency of ASPB and Steve Huber, USDA/University of Illinois, as president-elect. Both Nick and Steve have been highly dedicated ASPB members and have already served admirably in various capacities in our Society. Suffice it to say, “Ongoing Business”—and all that lies beyond—is in good hands.

Tuan-hua David Ho