It is an honour to become the president of European Association of Geochemistry.  I have been “president-in-training” over the last two years, learning the ropes from the past president, Bernard Marty, and the “past-past president”, Liane Benning.  It is a clever governance: you learn the ropes, then you govern, and afterwards you pass on your valuable knowledge to the new president and vice president.  Bernard and Liane, thank you for your good work. EAG has done very well during Bernard´s term. Goldschmidt2017 in Paris was the largest ever, with pioneering science and an exciting social program, all in the setting of a truly beautiful city. It was memorable to meet Hélène Langevin-Joliot, the granddaughter of Pierre and Marie Curie, and to listen to her describe her grandparents’ lives and research in her plenary talk.  I also have to mention the Double Scotch concert that was such a hit, starring Bernard on electric guitar and Alice Williams, from the EAG office, as lead singer. They were fantastic. Elsewhere, the EAG publications keep on growing, especially Geochemical Perspectives Letters. Geochemical Perspectives has achieved a five-year impact factor of 9.7 and the impact factor of Geochemical Perspectives Letters will be announced in June 2019.  We are all grateful to the editors and the editorial office for their commitment and hard work.

The EAG is an energetic community that relies on the efforts of unselfish and generous individuals. These are the many councillors and committee members listed at www.eag.eu.com/about. On behalf of everyone at EAG, I would like to thank the council and board members who are moving on this year – Liane Benning, Andreas Kappler, Antje Boetius, Don Canfield and Kirsten Küsel – and to welcome in the new members who joined in January – Kate Kiseeva, Alberto Vitale Broverone, Dan Frost and Maud Boyet.

We are also blessed with a strong and dynamic business office, managed by Marie-Aude Hulshoff and co-run by Alice Williams. Their task list is long: Goldschmidt conferences, society matters, publications, websites, newsletters, workshops, outreach programs, awards… and –– last but certainly not least –– they keep the rest of us on track and make sure the tasks get done.

Organising the Goldschmid conference in odd-numbered years in Europe is EAG’s greatest task, managed by the Organising & Science Committee and the Local Organising Committee, who make sure we get the best of what each city has to offer. I would like to thank Antje Boetius, Chair of the 2017 Organising & Science Committee, and Marc Chaussidon, Chair of the 2017 Local Organising Committee, as well as their respective committees, for the success of Goldschmidt in Paris.

According to the Goldschmidt Conference tradition its scope spans “the origin of the Earth and planets, the chemical processes that have shaped Earth’s evolution over time, the interconnections between life and the physical world, the search for new resources, and the environmental challenges facing today’s world”.  Humanity faces a number of large challenges, from global warming to new environmental hazards. The world looks to us for help, and we must find a way to reach out to the public and policy makers to help solve some of these problems.

Goldschmidt2019 is coming up in just few months, August 18-23, with a cutting-edge science program co-organised by Helen Williams and Derek Vance and their committees, and a local program organised by Joan Marti Molist and his team. We look forward to welcoming you to the beautiful city of Barcelona, with great local food, culture and architecture to enjoy, and a conference venue right by the beach. Perhaps our main concern will be how to keep people in sessions. I can’t wait to see you all there!

Sigurður Reynir Gislason, EAG President

About the author:

Sigurður (Siggi) Reynir Gíslason received his PhD in geochemistry from the Johns Hopkins University, under the supervision of Hans P. Eugster. He is a Research Professor at the Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Iceland. He is the chairman of CarbFix, the initiative to store carbon in basaltic rocks. Siggi’s major scientific contributions are: 1) measurement of the dissolution rates and dissolution mechanisms of volcanic glasses as a function of glass composition, aqueous solution composition and temperature, 2) field and laboratory experiments related to mineral storage of CO₂ in basaltic rocks, 3) quantifying the chemical/physical erosion rates of basaltic terrains and their contribution to the global carbon cycle and 4) measuring the environmental effects of volcanic eruptions.

Siggi has been involved with the EAG since 2015, serving first as Councillor before being elected EAG Vice-president in 2017. He will serve as President of the EAG from 2019-2020.