BGS engineering geologist elected to CCOP

Marcus Dobbs, head of BGS Engineering Geology, has been appointed as vice-chair of the advisory group for the Coordinating Committee for Geoscience Programmes in East and Southeast Asia (CCOP). Marcus has been elected alongside the new chair of the advisory group, Philipp Schmidt-Thomé of the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK). The two recently attended their first CCOP steering committee meeting in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam.

The advisory group’s role is to provide strategic advice to the CCOP steering committee and technical secretariat to support the development and delivery of CCOP’s overall strategy, ensuring it meets the needs of member countries and aligns with sustainable development goals. This includes:

• enhancing the impact and communication of CCOP science
• monitoring developments and user needs in geoscience
• supporting capacity building and early career professionals
• fostering knowledge exchange and partnerships
• advising on recruitment and staff development
• securing aligned funding
• encouraging contributions from coordinating countries and cooperating organisations
• offering any additional support needed to help CCOP achieve its strategic objectives

I’m delighted to be working alongside Philipp and fellow members of the CCOP advisory group to help deliver CCOP’s new strategic plan for 2026 to 2030. Geoscience sits at the heart of humanity’s response to the challenges of sustainable development and disaster resilience, and its greatest impact is realised when nations work together across borders. Through strong intergovernmental partnerships such as CCOP, we can translate geoscientific data and knowledge into lasting social, economic and environmental benefit at a truly global scale.

Marcus Dobbs, head of engineering geology at BGS.