CUAHSI's 25th Anniversary Reflections with JP Gannon
Posted Oct 6, 2026
As part of CUAHSI's 25th anniversary, we're featuring a series of reflections from some of the people who have helped shape CUAHSI's story over the years. Our next invited contributor is JP Gannon, CUAHSI Board of Directors, Chair.
CUAHSI has been a key part of my academic journey since the beginning of my PhD. In the early days, it was just a way to find and connect with other water scientists at AGU. I remember going to the CUAHSI mixer in probably 2011 or so and wondering if I was really supposed to be there, unsure if my university was a member (it was! But I would’ve been welcome either way). Connections I made in or around CUAHSI events at meetings have led to some of my best and longest enduring collaborations and an amazing support network of water scientists. As I progressed in my career, CUAHSI was a way for me to engage with other water scientists interested in education through some committee work, of course a place to store data (shout out to hydroshare), a source of funding to kickstart a project, a partner in making free educational materials available, and a way for me to give back to my community through service. I find myself now nine months into my year as chair of the board of directors wondering where the time has gone, thankful for CUAHSI’s existence and the hard work of its employees, CEO, and board, and hopeful that it continues long into the future so others can benefit from all that CUAHSI does.
The existence of something like CUAHSI is not a given. This is something that only became apparent to me through my service on the board. A LOT of hard work from a lot of people is necessary to keep a service organization like this running and viable and it can’t work without community support. My time as chair has truly magnified my appreciation of the myriad ways CUAHSI impacts water science and water scientists! Our science and our people benefit immensely from this organization. So, if I can use my little slot in the newsletter to advocate: even though CUAHSI is, in my opinion, crushing it right now, we can’t lose sight of the need to keep showing our support. When decisions are being made by funders in the future, we want it to be abundantly obvious that CUAHSI is critical to water science. There are all sorts of ways you can show your support, and some of them are pretty easy! Join or renew your institution’s membership, forward the newsletter or program announcements to colleagues, send an email to new graduate students or faculty at your institutions introducing them to CUAHSI, nominate yourself for the board or for an advisory committee, nominate a colleague for an award, or just participate in one of CUAHSI’s many programs or host some data at hydroshare!
Cheers to CUAHSI in this 25th anniversary year. I look forward to showing my support well after my time on the board comes to a close!