Dear RSC Friends and Colleagues,
I would like to update you on the RSC’s areas of focus since my note of March 13, and also to draw attention to an outstanding achievement by Members of the RSC College.
Our priority remains ensuring the health and safety of the Walter House team and the RSC community, while identifying areas of focus that, despite the current circumstances, can result in meaningful achievements in our strategic plan. Toward these ends:
- The work-from-home protocol for the Walter House team took effect on March 16.
- Some initiatives, such as the launch of the RSC Policy Briefing on End of Life Decision-Making, have been postponed.
- The Board of Directors will meet to focus on fiduciary matters including business continuity, budget preparation and risk assessment.
- The RSC Council will ensure that the processes leading to this year’s new members and award winners proceed.
Beyond our “core business” of recognizing excellence, we have been harnessing our organizational energy into initiatives to support Canada's response to COVID-19. On our website we have listed the Fellows and College Members, from a variety of disciplines, who have enthusiastically responded to our initiative to compile a list of RSC Members with expertise in areas related to COVID-19. This experience has encouraged us to accelerate our work in building a regular mechanism for an RSC rapid response to urgent societal issues, and to further enhance the visibility and transparency of our initiatives on the website and in social media.
These weeks of considerable challenge have also featured some notable achievements. For example, last week, FACETS (the official journal of the Academy of Science) published the result of a collective effort that features 57 RSC College Members as co-authors in a study of interdisciplinarity. The article is available here, and it is a testament to Steven Cooke, who is the lead author of the work as well as Secretary of the RSC College. The article demonstrates in both methodology and substance how collaborative efforts across disciplines enhance impact in addressing the wicked global and domestic issues of our time. Bravo to all of those who participated!
As we continue to focus on promoting the willingness of members of the RSC community to contribute to a better future, I would be pleased to hear from you with suggestions about how best to advance our mission. I can be reached at jmcneil2@uwo.ca.
With best wishes,
Jeremy