President’s Plan of Work

"Merging Our Deeper Currents"

Donald C. Jackson -- AFS President 2009-2010

There is incredible diversity among the ranks of fisheries professionals. Membership and the organizational structure of the American Fisheries Society (AFS) reflect this diversity. The "variance" that exists in AFS is music, not noise.

In trust, and through respect, members throughout AFS willingly and commonly transcend parameters of specific individual interests, and seek common ground, common denominators, at higher levels of resolution (e.g., chapters, divisions, sections, committees), with an understanding that, ultimately, in so doing, we will be afforded opportunity to enhance our insights and capabilities as professionals and, through synergism, accomplish tasks greater than the sum of our individual efforts. This willful transcendence has, through our history, strengthened AFS as a professional scientific organization and is one of the foundation blocks of our corporate identity. It is critical, however, that through these processes we remain mindful of the sources of inspiration and energy that led members of AFS to dedicate their careers and to a large extent, their lives, to the fisheries professions.

In this regard, every one of us has a story. Some of us can identify a pivotal moment or situation, perhaps as an epiphany, when the light came on and the path became clear. For others the process was more gradual, with intertwining vectors that eventually brought us to the realization that we were (and hopefully are), through our professions, doing that which best expresses who we are as persons. In either case, commitments are made and we move forward on the journey. Along the way the deeply internalized voice that reflects the core of our being and which is, in reality, the compass that led us to our profession, can become faint. The frameworks and demands of the human institutions within which we live and work and express our identities, can smother what may well be the most powerful source of energy in our lives.

We cannot afford to lose this energy or have it dissipated in the fisheries professions or in AFS. The need for what we contribute to the wellbeing of the world is simply too great. Subsequently, as President of the American Fisheries Society, my overarching goal will be to help us all strengthen our connections with this source of energy and inspiration so that we can do our work better and confirm that we are giving our lives away for good and meaningful reasons. We need to fan the flames and charge the batteries. We need the power that comes from merging our deeper currents: those that swirl within us, and those that flow among us. We can do this in AFS.

It will not be an easy process. Ubiquitous success cannot be assured. For those of us who are scientists, there may be great discomfort because our disciplines generally require us to take ourselves out of the picture to ensure objectivity in our work. I counter this by saying that scientists are people first, and that without passion for the things we do and the lives we lead, we are but shadows of what we can and should be…as persons…as professionals.

If, as scientists, we cannot fully engage who we are, how can we be fully engaged with what we do? We do not need semi-serious commitments in our fields. We need full commitments. The world is depending on us not just to be professional but to express our professionalism through our humanity. And…this is what AFS does, and does very well. It is our heritage, our time-tested legacy. But we need to step back occasionally and spend some time and energy reflecting on these things. It is my intention, as your president, to lead us on this path. It will make us stronger. It is a good investment in our future.

During my year as president, AFS will launch our new strategic plan, a plan that embraces a worldview of fisheries. In this plan AFS confirms its identity as a professional scientific society committed to enhancing professionalism within and beyond the ranks of our members; and to advancing responsible stewardship of fisheries and allied aquatic resources through an array of specific strategies. Through this plan, AFS will focus on generating opportunities for diverse disciplines and energies within and beyond AFS to coalesce to form shared vision and shared purpose so that ultimately we can experience (and celebrate) shared accomplishments. The strategic plan also addresses avenues for reaching out to individual members within our ranks, opening ways for us to nurture, strengthen … perhaps recapture … those intensely personal internal forces that sustain us on our professional pilgrimages. As your president, I fully intend to merge my currents, absolutely, and completely, with those outlined in our strategic plan. It is through the merging of our deeper currents in AFS that we will enhance the gifts we share with the world as we reach out to it with a positive touch in the arenas of the sciences and natural resources stewardship.

Proposed Elements

Engaging New Cohorts (Addresses AFS 2020: Objective 3.2)

• Advancing mentoring/shadowing initiative at AFS meetings (beyond single events).
• Recruiting students and young professionals into the ranks of AFS committees, unit leadership, and task forces.
• Seeking opportunities for enhancing the Hutton Scholarship Program
• Encouraging established professionals to assume responsibility for integration of our emerging cohorts into the mainstream of AFS.

Outreach to Diverse Cultures (Addresses AFS 2020: Objectives 1.1 and 3.3)

• Engaging the Publications Oversight Committee to explore opportunities in AFS publications for enhancing membership and trans-regional professional connections throughout the Americas.
• Advancing the Equal Opportunities Section’s mission for addressing AFS relevancy to minority groups (including women) in North America; and encouraging development of a symposium for the 2010 Annual Meeting to address this theme.

Ensuring Opportunity for Full Participation (Addresses AFS 2020 Objectives 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 and 2.1)

• Working with Congress, the Department of Justice, and Government Agencies (state and federal) to clarify rules for federal employees regarding leadership in scientific societies. Opportunities for collaboration with other scientific organizations on this issue will be explored.
• Advancing the evolution of AFS briefing sessions on Capitol Hill to showcase key fisheries issues.
• Expediting conversion of key AFS publications into lay language.
• Encouraging a symposium for the 2010 annual meeting or in the context of a Topic Oriented Meeting (TOM) to address bridging science with politics and policy.

Showcasing Regional Priorities (AFS 2020: Objectives 1.1 and 1.2)

• There are fairly distinct regional cultures and issues throughout AFS. Subsequently, AFS Divisions will be encouraged to choose a representative issue/program from within their respective geographic region that the Division would like to showcase. The AFS President and/or Executive Director will visit the Division and participate directly in the program to gain on-the-ground experience/perspective. Thereafter a feature article will be developed for publication in Fisheries magazine. Theme for this initiative: "Regional Specifics, Professional Common Denominators".

Identifying/Nurturing Core Values (Addresses AFS 2020: Objective 3.2)

• Development of a plenary session for the 2010 Annual Meeting to address sources of inspiration and energy that bring professionals into our ranks, sustain then through their careers, and give them assurances upon retirement of life well invested. A symposium addressing this theme will be encouraged.

Collaboration with Other Natural Resources and Scientific Organization (Addresses AFS 2020: Objectives 1.1 and 2.1)

• The year of my presidency presents AFS with a unique opportunity for synergism with The Wildlife Society (TWS) because the incoming president of TWS (Bruce Leopold) works with me in the Department of Wildlife & Fisheries at Mississippi State University. Dr. Leopold is a member of AFS. We intend to conduct regularly-scheduled meetings to discuss issues of common interest and concern. I particularly want to explore opportunities for joint ventures, particularly in the arenas of continuing education and Topic Oriented Meetings.