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SESYNC Director Margaret Palmer and Dutch soil scientist Joris van der Kamp were part of an international delegation of scientists invited by the government of North Korea and funded by the American Association for the Advancement of Science to attend a recent conference on ecological restoration in the long-isolated country. Through site visits and presentations by North Korean scientists they witnessed a barren landscape that is teetering on collapse, ravaged by decades of environmental degradation.

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SESYNC joins the broader community in mourning the loss of board member and colleague Dr. Lin Ostrom. SESYNC joins the broader community in mourning the loss of board member and colleague Dr. Lin Ostrom.  You can find a memorial page linked below as well as NPR's coverage of the loss of the first woman to win a Nobel Prize in economics, here.

Environmental think tank opens in Annapolis The Capital By PAMELA WOOD, Staff Writer Published 01/31/12 With enough "thank-you" speeches to rival the Academy Awards, officials celebrated the opening of an environmental think tank in Annapolis Monday afternoon. The National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center's goal is to use new approaches to solve environmental problems. The center is led by Margaret Palmer, a Davidsonville resident and University of Maryland scientist. Scholars will spend days and sometimes weeks at the center's Park Place offices. The center doesn't have labs, and there won't be any experiments. Rather, scholars will use computers to re-crunch "existing but underused" data - a form of science called "synthesis research." There also will be a strong focus on bringing together different types of scientists who may not normally work together, including social scientists. Palmer said she's also interested in getting decision-makers involved earlier. Often, scientists give presentations to politicians and regulators who may or may not heed the scientific information. It would be more useful, Palmer said, for scientists to understand early on the questions that politicians and regulators have. The center has hosted workshops and will soon select its first group of scholars, who will come to Annapolis in the spring to study "ecological wealth." Annapolis Mayor Josh Cohen sees an economic boon with the center's presence. "That's going to translate into hotel rooms, meals and a positive economic impact," Cohen said. The center will help cement the city's reputation as an environmental leader. Scores of Chesapeake Bay-related government agencies and nonprofit groups have offices in and around Annapolis, and the city's residents have a reputation for environmental awareness, Cohen said. The center - called by its acronym SESYNC, pronounced like "succinct" without the "t" - has drawn high-powered political and academic support. Yesterday's dedication was attended by Gov. Martin O'Malley; House Speaker Michael E. Busch, D-Annapolis; state Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., D-Calvert; U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., and top University System of Maryland officials. The center is funded mainly by a five-year, $27.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation that is expected to be renewed for five more years. The state government also has kicked in $150,000 a year.