February 25, 2011; 3:00pm ET

• Larry Murdoch, Clemson University
  Title: Protecting Coastal Cities from Catastrophic Flooding

March 11, 2011; 3:00pm ET

• David Letson, University of Miami
  Title: Economics of Natural Disasters

April 1, 2011; 3:00pm ET

• Sankar Arugum, North Carolina State University
  Title: Climate Forecasts and Water Management: Opportunities and Challenges

April 15, 2011; 3:00pm ET

• Laurence Smith, University of California, Los Angeles
  Title: The New North: Four Forces Shaping our Northern Future

For additional information about CUAHSI cyberseminars, please go to the Cyberseminars page.

Oregon State University conducted an "International Undergraduate Field Hydrology" course in the environs of Chillán, Chile between January 2nd - 15th, 2011. The course was led by Dr. John Selker, a professor at Oregon State University (OSU), with additional instruction by research scientists Dr. Majdi Abou Najm (OSU), Dr. David Rupp (OSU), and Mr. Ryan Stewart (OSU). Local expertise was also be provided by Dr. Hamil Uribe, a hydrologist at the Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (INIA), and Dr. José Luís Arumí, a professor at the Universidad de Concepción, Chillán. This course was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under the Hydrologic Sciences Program specifically to advance both undergraduate education and the scientific mission of OSU's Chilean project. Through the CUAHSI HydroGeoPhysics Travel Grant program (Ty Ferré, PI - University of Arizona, HWR), travel funding was provided to Dr. John Lane of the USGS which, according to Dr. Selker, "enabled us to add an unexpected dimension to the course, and afforded a unique opportunity for collaboration."

This was a truly top-flight, international event. OSU received 45 complete applications from US students to participate. They had only expected to accept seven students, but faced with such remarkable talent and enthusiasm, they ultimately accepted 16 students from across the US. Universities represented included Oregon State University, the University of Illinois, the University of Colorado at Boulder, the University of Washington, Portland State University, Columbia University, Boise State University, the University of Reno-Nevada, the University of Wisconsin, Syracuse University, the University of Mississippi, Johns Hopkins University, Temple University, and Purdue University. These students were joined by one student from Germany and five students from Chile.

The support provided by the CUAHSI HMF HydroGeoPhysics Travel Grant program, that made possible the participation of John Lane, not only brought cutting edge geophysical techniques to the class, but also brought those methods to bear on OSU's NSF project. The students all directly participated in geophysical field methods based on observation of seismic resonance, electrical resistivity, and electromagnetic conductivity during the course of several infiltration and evapotranspiration experiments. In addition, the geophysical data acquired during the course significantly advanced our understanding of the site and the underlying hydrologic processes. Again, according to Dr. Selker:

"John Lane's participation had some other unexpected benefits as well. It turned out that two of the students work for the USGS. These two students are now better prepared to serve the nation within this organization. The participation of the USGS in this event demonstrates the potential for synergistic collaboration between CUAHSI and the USGS. As a result of the support of the CUAHSI HMF HydroGeoPhysics Node, we have data that we believe will lead to no fewer than two joint publications illustrating novel applications of geophysical methods to observe hydrologic processes. Finally, there are more than twenty of the country's top engineering and earth sciences students who now see the importance of geophysics in hydrology and the role of the USGS in advancing understanding of water resources around the world."

The following new Directors were elected at CUAHSI's annual membership meeting on December 7, 2010:

• David Freyberg — Stanford University
• Brian McGlynn — Montana State University
• Jim McNamara — Boise State University
• Todd Rasmussen — University of Georgia
• Ying Fan Reinfelder — Rutgers University

Congratulations to the new Board members. And thanks to those who also participated in the elections and to those whose terms are ending (Patricia Maurice, University of Notre Dame; Kenneth Potter, University of Wisconsin; and Claire Welty, University of Maryland, Baltimore County). We appreciate all your time, effort, and support.

The following new Officers were elected at CUAHSI's Board of Directors meeting on January 4-5, 2011:

• Secretary: Chris Graham — Pennsylvania State University
• Treasurer: Rina Schumer — Desert Research Institute

Congratulations to the new Officers. Thanks to those whose terms are ending: Secretary: Kevin Dressler, Pennsylvania State University and Treasurer: Brian Waldron, University of Memphis. We appreciate the great work you've done during your tenure.

To learn more about the changes made to the CUAHSI Bylaws as approved by the membership during the December 7, 2010 Annual Membership Meeting, please go to the December 2010 eNews Brief.

For additional information about CUAHSI governance in general, please go to the Board of Directors page.

Jennifer comes to CUAHSI from East Carolina University where she was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography teaching both undergraduate and graduate classes in Environmental Geography, Hydrology and Atmospheric Science. Her research interests while at ECU were in statistical hydroclimatology, environmental modeling, and understanding integrated human-water systems. She taught courses in both natural and social science, in atmospheric science and environmental geography. Her research background is in surface hydrology and statistical and analytical modeling, and her academic research focus had been on understanding and on more fully integrating humans into environmental and hydrologic modeling frameworks.

Jennifer received a PhD in Geography from Boston University Department of Geography and Environment, Boston MA in January 2005. Her B.A. in Environmental Science, also from Boston University Center for Energy and Environmental Studies, Boston, MA was awarded in May 1999.

Jennifer has been active in education and outreach activities, including organizing and participating in "Geography Awareness" seminars at her previous institution, and pursuing distance education and global awareness initiatives. She has been involved in hydrologic synthesis, through her collaboration on an NSF-funded project Humans Transforming the Water Cycle, organized by the CUNY Environmental Cross Roads Initiative under Dr. Charlie Vorosmarty. She is excited to be joining CUAHSI as the new program manager, and is looking forward to the opportunity to lead new programmatic efforts and support the various activities of the membership.

Jennifer's first day at CUAHSI was January 3, 2011. She hit the ground running and hasn't stopped yet.