One of the most important ways to participate in the SZ4D initiative is to join one of our oversight committees. These committees will allow you to represent your community’s priorities as SZ4D begins its implementation phase. The committees will be instrumental in helping to build the overall structure of an SZ4D center, design the types of instrument arrays that will be necessary to answer the SZ4D science questions, to coordinate new activities with existing ones, and to build capacity and equity in the initiative.

If you would like to get involved, fill out this form, indicating your interest in serving by June 26. You can also volunteer someone for committee membership. Nominations and recommendations will be compiled by the Committee on Committees that will develop a slate of potential candidates for each of the oversight committees described below. The Committee on Committee ensures that equity, inclusion, and a diversity of viewpoints are built into the SZ4D. The proposed slate will be reviewed by the SZ4D Center Steering Committee for approval.

SZ4D has developed a set of transitional committees meant to promote involvement in the initiative as the program gets going. Each committee has a different level of responsibility, which corresponds to the commitment associated with it (see Figure). Committee appointments are typically for three years, with approximately one third of each committee being new each year.

Thank you for your interest in serving on SZ4D Committees!

Disciplinary & Integrative Working Groups

If you are interested in participating in the effort, but your time and capacity are limited, you might consider volunteering for one of our disciplinary working groups or integrative groups. The disciplinary groups will provide scientific input for each of the three major disciplines represented by the SZ4D (Land- and Seascapes, Magmatic Drivers of Eruption, and Faulting and Earthquake Cycles), while the integrative groups will focus on Building Equity and Capacity with Geoscience and the Modeling Collaboratory for Subduction efforts. These groups typically meet once a month, but may increase in frequency to meet specific needs.

Collective Impact Committee

The working & integrative groups will provide input to the Collective Impact Committee, which provides cross-cutting, scientific input and prioritization to the SZ4D effort to help ensure a high level of coordination across the initiative. If you are interested and able to dedicate time to the SZ4D effort, this might be an exciting opportunity for you to help guide the SZ4D balance the needs of all of its disciplinary and cross-cutting priorities. This group typically meets every two weeks.

Operations Planning Committee

The Operations Planning Committee will be responsible for the development and coordination of the actual SZ4D deployments. So, if you’re deeply interested in instrumentation and/or field campaigns, this committee is for you! This group typically meets every two weeks.

Center Steering Committee

Finally, if you’re “all-in” on SZ4D and want to participate in the day-to-day work of the project, we could use your help on the Center Steering Committee. This committee is responsible for moving the project forward based on the directives of the Collective Impact Committee, and the deployment specifications provided by the Operations Planning Committee. Serving on the Steering Committee would allow you to be deeply involved in the SZ4D and work on behalf of your community to bring SZ4D vision to life. This group typically meets every two weeks with additional asynchronous work in between.