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BAMOS August 2025
President’ s report
Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick
Hello AMOS community! I’ m excited to write my first BAMOS report as the new president. I took over just before the AMOS conference in Cairns, so I have been in the job for a few short weeks. A huge thank you to the previous president, Martin Singh, for his wonderful work in running our fantastic organisation over the last 18 months. Martin will remain part of the AMOS Executive, taking the position of Vice President.
I think it’ s fair to say many of us are still buzzing from Cairns. From the 22nd to the 26th June, just shy of 400 delegates descended on the Cairns Convention Centre to talk about all things weather, oceans, and climate. Not only was it a reprieve from the chilly temperatures down south, but it was also wonderful for our community to come together once again.
We had a great lineup of plenaries this year. Alex Sen Gupta gave the first plenary by delivering the annual RH Clarke lecture on marine heatwaves. Ove Hoegh-Guldberg then took us on a journey discussing the Past, Present, and Future of the Great Barrier Reef. Ed Doddridge gave an equally outstanding and moving presentation associated with the Meyers Medal, which was on how Antarctica and the Southern Ocean lie at the heart of our climate system. Michael Grose did a great job filling Blair Trewin’ s shoes and delivered the 2024 annual climate update. Chrissy Grant gave some excellent insights on engaging with indigenous communities to ensure the integrity of scientific research.
Eunice Lo, one of our two international plenaries, discussed conducting research in the interdisciplinary field of weather and health impacts. We also heard from the Honorable Matt Kean, former NSW Liberal politician and now Chair of the Climate Change Authority, on our wondrous, yet fragile, Great Barrier Reef. Australia ' s Chief Scientist, Tony Haymet, sang the praises of the AMOS community in a humorous speech delivered at the conference dinner, and Andreas Prein, our second international plenary, enlightened us on how kilometre-scale models are transforming our science. AMOS fellow Lisa Alexander discussed global rainfall changes, and Robyn Schofield delivered a fantastic final plenary on why it’ s important to monitor changes in our atmosphere.
The rest of the program was equally jam-packed. In addition to 16 parallel streams covering our physical sciences and engaging with the broader community, the conference featured three workshops( ACCESS-NRI, CORDEX, and AI), the Paul Holper Memorial Communications Session, the Indigenous-led climate action session, and a panel discussion on knowledge brokering and co-design. We also can’ t forget the pumping social schedule, which included an informal pre-conference meetup for anyone who arrived early, our regular icebreaker drinks on the first night, the early career research event and Fellows Dinner on the second night, and our“ tropical vibe” conference dinner on the third night. As promised, there was a prize for the best outfit. A huge congratulations to Michela Skipp from the University of Newcastle for winning! Post conference, there were two optional excursions, and it was great to see pretty much all of AMOS snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef( despite a very rocky trip out!). I hope everyone who made it to the Daintree had an equally fun time!
In case you missed it this year, the next AMOS conference, themed“ Southern Oceans, Southern Skies: Sciences at the Edge,” will be held in Hobart from 16 to 20 February 2026, so make sure to mark your calendars! Due to the short turnaround between conferences, we’ re doing the sessions a little differently this year. Around 15 general sessions will be proposed, so please keep your eyes peeled for the call for abstracts which has recently gone out. And particularly to those of you who couldn’ t make it to AMOS 2025, I am very much looking forward to welcoming you to AMOS 2026!
Nominations for the 2025 AMOS awards have just been announced. This year, we’ re calling for nominations for the Priestley and Zillman Medals, as well as the Christopher Taylor and Science Outreach Awards. Note that any AMOS member, regardless of career stage, can nominate another member, so long as they fit the respective criteria. Nominations for AMOS fellows will also open soon, and the same applies. So, get your thinking caps on and nominate, nominate, nominate!
I am very much looking forward to working with you all during my term as AMOS president. Please reach out if there is anything you’ d like to raise about how we can better represent the diverse communities that make up AMOS, as well as our community as a whole. I am passionate about ensuring every member of our community is valued just as much as the terrific meteorological, oceanographic, and climate science we develop together.
P. S. My ankle is slowly improving. Thanks to everyone for all their offers of help and support during the conference. It’ s a true testament to just how supportive our community really is.