Established in 1957, SCOR was the first interdisciplinary body formed by the International Council for Science (ICSU). Recognition that the scientific problems of the ocean require a truly interdisciplinary approach was embodied in plans for the International Geophysical Year of 1957-1958. Accordingly, SCOR's first major effort was to plan a coordinated, international approach to the least-studied ocean basin of all, the Indian Ocean. The International Indian Ocean Expedition of the early 1960s was the result.
For the next thirty years, the reputation of SCOR was largely based upon the successes of its scientific working groups. These small international groups address narrowly focused scientific topics (often new, "hot" topics in the field) that can benefit from international attention. Working groups must accomplish their objectives within a limited time frame, usually about four years. They are established in response to proposals from national committees for SCOR, other scientific organizations, or previous working groups. All working groups are expected to produce a final report, organize a workshop or symposium, or otherwise make a significant contribution to advancing understanding of their topic.
SCOR Secretariat
SCOR has had an Executive Secretary and Secretariat from early in its existence. At the beginning, SCOR's secretary served as its Executive Secretary and the Secretariat was located with the Secretary. Later, SCOR hired an Executive Secretary (later Executive Director) and an associated Secretariat.
| Years | Executive Secretary/Director | Secretariat Location |
| 1974-1980 | George E. Hemmen | Royal Society (UK) |
| 1980-1992 | Elizabeth Tidmarsh | Dalhousie University |
| 1992-2000 | Elizabeth Tidmarsh Gross | Johns Hopkins University |
| 2000-present | Edward R. Urban Jr. | Johns Hopkins University |
Presently, SCOR sponsors 9 working groups, addressing topics that range from coastal modeling to the the effects of marine phytoplankton on climate. SCOR working groups are often joint efforts with other organizations. SCOR has sponsored 115 other working groups since 1960, which have completed their work, and have been disbanded.
The past two decades have brought a growing scientific understanding of the influence of the ocean in large-scale climate patterns and in moderating global change. By the early 1980s the promise of increased computing capabilities and new satellite instruments for remote sensing of the global ocean permitted oceanographers to conceive of internationally planned and implemented experiments of a scale never before possible. In fact, ocean scientists recognized that such large-scale programs are vital to understanding the ocean's role in Earth systems. For such long-term, complex activities, SCOR establishes scientific steering committees, and provides coordination and administrative support during the early planning stages of projects. SCOR then usually steps back as the projects gather their own momentum, establish International Project Offices (IPOs), and find their own sources of funding. The early affiliation of projects with SCOR can provide an efficient mechanism for international coordination and the involvement of many new countries in these programs.
The first two global-scale projects resulting from SCOR activities were primarily physical studies: the World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) and the Tropical Ocean-Global Atmosphere Study (TOGA). Both grew out of SCOR's former Committee on Climatic Changes and the Ocean, which was a joint activity with the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO. TOGA provided much new understanding of El Niño and developed the capability to predict the occurrence of El Niño events with reasonable accuracy. WOCE and TOGA have completed their work.
Since the late 1980s, SCOR has played a major role in fostering the development of several other large-scale ocean research projects. The Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS) focused on the role of the ocean in the global carbon cycle and completed its work in 2003. The Global Ocean Ecosystem Dynamics (GLOBEC) project is concerned with the relationship between physical and biological variability in the ocean and how global change might impact the structure and functioning of marine ecosystems, with particular emphasis on important fisheries. JGOFS was co-sponsored by the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) and GLOBEC is co-sponsored by IGBP and IOC. SCOR has been working with IGBP to develop the International Marine Biogeochemistry and Ecosystem Research (IMBER) project and with IGBP, the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) and the Commission on Atmospheric Chemistry and Global Pollution (CACGP) to develop the Surface Ocean - Lower Atmosphere Study (SOLAS).
SCOR and IOC have developed a new international program--Global Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms (GEOHAB)--with a focus on obtaining an understanding of the ecological and oceanographic conditions that cause harmful algal blooms and promote their development.
SCOR has been managed by an Executive Committee whose members have been some of the major figures in international oceangraphic activities since World War II. SCOR annual meetings have been held in all parts of the world and have been documented by published reports since 1965.
In 2003, ICSU evaluated its environmental components and concluded: “…every oceanographer is familiar with at least some of SCOR’s impressive list of accomplishments. This organization has a rich history of successes with working groups that have vetted methods of sample collection and analysis, and brainstormed topics for future research. Well known is the reputation of SCOR for its extensive outreach to scientists, laboratories, and research organizations in the developing world. Over the last 45 years, many developed country oceanographers made their first contacts with developing country scientists through SCOR meetings and reports….SCOR, more than any other organization, is responsible for the widespread international cooperation that is characteristic of modern ocean science. SCOR sponsorship remains still the best way to bring oceanographers of all disciplines to the table. …SCOR has demonstrated flexibility in its focus as ocean science has evolved, and the success of future ICSU projects and activities related to the ocean would be significantly diminished without the scientific integrity and experience of SCOR. Ocean science is inherently global, and SCOR is the instrument by which good local ideas in this field become global.”
References
Elements of SCOR history are accessible through the SCOR Proceedings series (limited copies are available upon request), as well as the following articles:
Questions or Comments?
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