Society Headlines
Highlights from the 2021 Business Meeting
Congratulations to all the officer and committee election winners!
President - Mikki McComb-Kobza
Treasurer - Chris Bedore
Board of Directors - Marianne Porter, David Shiffman
Nominating Committee - Eloise Cave, Melissa Nehmens, Nicole Phillips, Bianca Prohaska, Sabine Wintner
Grant Fund Committee - Andy Nosal, Emily Peele
Equity & Diversity Committee - Jasmin Graham, Rachel Skubel
And congratulations to the student award winners!
Nelson Research Award - Ashley Dawdy - "Movement Behavior of Cownose Rays (Rhinoptera bonasus) in Apalachicola Bay, FL"
AES Research Award - Emily Meese - "Spatial movement patterns of a coastal mesopredator in a subtropical estuary"
Mollet Research Award - Maria Sabando - "Metal heads: Physiological and neurological effects of methylmercury on a small coastal elasmobranch, Mustelus canis"
Gruber Student Presentation Award - Jennifer Pytka - “Caught on the Net: Quantifying the Online Trade of a CITES LISTED Elasmobranch”
And last but certainly not least, we are pleased to announce Dr. Brit Finucci is the winner of American Elasmobranch Society’s Eugenie Clark Award for 2021! We and our partners at Mote Marine Laboratory and Save Our Seas Foundation sponsor this award in honor of Genie and to continue to inspire early career female shark scientists. Like Genie, Brit is dedicated to the study of a variety of chondrichthyans (sharks, skates and rays) and she is especially known for her work on those that inhabit deeper parts of the ocean and ghost sharks. Beyond the science, Brit is a leading voice educating the public about these little known, threatened species. We congratulate Brit on this well-deserved honor! Read more about the award: http://elasmo.org/eugenie-clark-award
Meet our 2021 YPRF diversity scholarship winners!
Statement from the American Elasmobranch Society on Sexism in Chondricthyan Research
The American Elasmobranch Society (AES) is aware of a number of problems with the culture of shark research, especially regarding the treatment of women in our field and in the scientific field as a whole. We sincerely regret that incidents that have promoted a culture of sexism have occurred during our annual society meetings, and apologize to those who have been directly affected and those who have been made to feel unwelcome in our field. Further, we thank those who have come forward with their stories for giving us the impetus to make changes for the better.
AES strives to create a welcoming atmosphere where everyone’s voice is heard and collaboration can take place. Over the past few years AES has taken a lead on creating a Code of Conduct (CoC) for the Society and has worked with our other three societies of the Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists (JMIH) to devise a conference-wide CoC and whistleblower reporting structure, including an external ombudsman to reduce conflicts of interest and to ensure that incidents can be resolved in a timely fashion. The CoC also provides a framework for any necessary disciplinary action for violations and makes it possible to report CoC violations to our newly established Equity & Diversity Committee anonymously (more information: http://elasmo.org/code-conduct). The purpose of this standing committee is to work towards greater inclusivity and diversity within AES, so that our membership better reflects the communities in which we live. To this end, we have maintained the Young Professional Recruitment Fund since 2017, which supports young scientists from developing nations or historically underrepresented minority groups, and we recently issued a formal statement in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. In addition, we are continuing to work with the other JMIH societies to develop an equitable long-term model for providing childcare at our annual meetings, and to improve the meeting experience for the benefit of LGBTQ+ attendees.
AES reiterates its commitment to continually improve the culture in our Society and adapt to ensure that all people are welcome and supported. We hope that our efforts can help counter some of the harm done and that we can play a role in making shark research a safer, more equitable, and welcoming field for everyone.
Statement from the American Elasmobranch Society
The American Elasmobranch Society condemns the historical and continued institutional racism that so heinously affects our Black members, colleagues, and friends. We acknowledge, respect, and stand with them. The recent and historic violence against Black people is not supported by our society.
We are committed to diversity, equity and equality and as such, we commit ourselves to identifying and addressing the explicit and implicit biases within our society and our field. We acknowledge that the AES has been dominated by white voices and faces since its founding, and we must do more to amplify and promote voices of Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), to educate ourselves and our members, and to create a space that is free of hate and bias. We strive to foster an inclusive environment and lower the barriers that result in underrepresentation of BIPOC in elasmobranch biology.
We recognize that science is stronger with greater diversity and join other scientific societies in committing to advance the cause of underrepresented BIPOC in science. We stand against oppression of any kind, but specifically recognize the institutionalized racism that BIPOC face in entering the scientific sphere. We demand accountability for law enforcement and commit to similarly providing accountability in science.
In memory of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and so many more that paid the ultimate price for the color of their skin, Black Lives Matter.
Sincerely,
The American Elasmobranch Society
AES now has a Code of Conduct
Effective immediately, AES has a Code of Conduct. Read the Code of Conduct and learn more about it here.
To submit a code of conduct violation email secretary@elasmo.org or submit this anonymous form.
Check out the AES Blog
Visit the AES blog for interviews with student award winners, updates on upcoming conferences, and more!