Steering Group

As of the 3rd meeting of the Baltic Earth Interim Science Steering Group (BEISSG) on 18 June 2014 in Lund, Sweden, the permanent Baltic Earth Science Steering Group (BESSG) has been installed. Baltic Earth is led and managed by the Baltic Earth Science Steering Group. The steering group has the responsibility to organize and maintain the programme efficiently.

Terms of Reference for the BESSG

Approved by BESSG, 18 June 2014
Modifications approved by BESSG, 8 March 2016 and 8 March 2017

Terms of Reference

1. Tasks of the BSSG are to

undertake the overall planning, monitoring and coordination of Baltic Earth
regularly review and update the Science Plan including the Grand Challenges, and to assess Baltic Earth actions and achievements against the provisions of the Science and Implementation plans
suggest and approve members and chairs of Baltic Earth panels, including the BESSG and the Senior Advisory Board (SAB), with qualified majority1
suggest and approve chairs of Baltic Earth Working Groups, with qualified majority1 1 The “qualified majority” is 2/3 of BESSG members present at a meeting.
initiate, supervise and review the work of Baltic Earth Working Groups
review developments relevant for Baltic Earth at international levels, suggest related actions for Baltic Earth, and report, or organize the reporting, to the relevant panels at international levels
interact with the various national and international authorities important for Baltic Earth
to promote Baltic Earth at the institutional, national and international level through presentations at meetings and conferences
establish and maintain links to other relevant projects and programmes and assure cooperation whenever possible and adequate
establish and maintain links to stakeholders, policy-makers and the public in order to i) create awareness of Baltic Earth, ii) make Baltic Earth results available for use, iii) exchange advise concerning Baltic Earth results, related requirements, and their application for the benefit of society
undertake suitable steps to both promote funding possibilities at national and international levels
actively initiate or support related funding proposals in support of the Baltic Earth
initiate and prepare Baltic Earth Conferences on a regular basis (every 2 years, starting with 2016)
initiate and prepare Baltic Earth symposia and workshops on relevant topics (at least one per year)
meet at least annually, with E-Mail communications between meetings

2. Term

For chairpersons: 3 years (starting June 2016), with the possibility for a renewal of the term
For members: 3 years (starting June 2016) , with the possibility for a renewal of the term

3. Election and approval

Criteria for a membership in the BESSG are scientific excellence, an active contribution to BESSG meetings, conferences, workshops, summer schools, working groups and projects, as well as gender, country, institutional and scientific discipline balance
New members need to be identified and suggested by at least one member
Suggestion of a candidate needs to be communicated to all members at least 4 weeks prior to election and approval by a qualified majority of the BESSG
Approval by the BESSG is normally done at a regular BESSG meeting, in important cases approval and election may be by E-mail between meetings
Final official approval by the BESSG chair

Markus Meier Chair of BESSG

Leibnitz-Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde, Germany and Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute, Sweden

E-mail contact

Numerical modeling of the Baltic Sea, North Sea and Arctic Ocean Atmosphere – sea ice – ocean interactions, biogeochemical modeling, ensemble scenario simulations, climate reconstructions and paleoclimatological studies

Member since June 2013

Karol Kulinski Vice-Chair of BESSG

Institute of Oceanology PAN, Sopot, Poland

E-mail contact

Carbon cycle in the marine environment, biological pump mechanism, greenhouse effect

Member since June 2013

Juris Aigars

Latvian Institute of Aquatic Ecology, Riga, Latvia

E-mail contact

Environmental Analysis, Environmental Monitoring, Sediments, Environment Environmental Impact Assessments, Eutrophication, Rivers

Member since June 2013

Franz Berger

Meteorologisches Observatorium Lindenberg - Richard-Aßmann-Observatorium, Deutscher Wetterdienst Tauche, Germany

E-mail contact

Atmospheric observation of regional and local water and energy cycle components and related atmospheric processes making use of three dimensional surface based and satellite observation techniques; data analysis for model evaluation, climate monitoring and satellite product validation.

Member since June 2013

Inga Dailidienė

Department of Geophysical Sciences, Klaipeda University, Lithuania

E-mail contact

Climate Change, Environment, Climatology, Oceanography, Earth Sciences, Geophysics, Geodesy and Surveying, Remote Sensing Applications

Member since June 2013

Irina Danilovich

Centre for Hydrometeorology and Control of Radioactive Contamination and Environmental Monitoring of the Republic of Belarus, Minsk, Belarus

E-mail contact

Hydrology, Hydrological engineering

Member since June 2013

Matthias Gröger

Leibnitz-Instutute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde, Germany

E-mail contact

Interactions between physical and biogeochemical processes and their sensitivity to climate change. Biogeochemical and hydrodynamical 3D modelling.

Member since February 2018

Andreas Lehmann

GEOMAR Helmholtz-Zentrum für Ozeanforschung Kiel Kiel, Germany

E-mail contact

Physical Oceanography, modelling

Member since June 2013

Urmas Lips

TalTech, Tallinn, Estonia

E-mail contact

Urmas is professor and head of Department of Marine Systems at Tallinn University of Technology. He is internationally involved in HELCOM, BOOS and EuroGOOS. One of his research interest involves the interplay between meteorological and hydrophysical processes on the one hand, and biological and biogeochemical processes on the other hand.

Member since Nov 2018

Kai Myrberg

SYKE Finnish Environment Institute

E-mail contact

3D marine modeling (especially physics), process studies (upwelling, vertical turbulence), smart use of currents for marine safety issues

Member since June 2013

Piia Post

Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, Estonia

E-mail contact

Atmospheric Sciences, Engineering, Climate Change, Environment, Remote Sensing, Meteorology, Earth Sciences, Remote Sensing Applications

Member since June 2013

Marcus Reckermann

Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Germany

E-mail contact

International Baltic Earth Secretariat; research management; communication of scientific findings to the public

Member since June 2013

Gregor Rehder

Baltic Sea Research Institute, Warnemünde, Germany

E-mail contact

Marine Chemistry

Member since June 2013

Anna Rutgersson

Department of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University, Sweden

E-mail contact

Ocean Modeling, Climate Modeling, Regional Climate Modeling, Boundary Layer Meteorology, Atmospheric Sciences, Climate Variability, Eddy Covariance Field Experiments

Member since June 2013

Tarmo Soomere

Tallinn University of Technology Department of Cybernetics President of the Estonian Academy of Science

E-mail contact

Wave dynamics, coastal engineering

Member since Feb 2018

Martin Stendel

Danish Climate Centre Danish Meteorological Institute

E-mail contact

Regional Climate Modelling

Member since June 2013

Laura Tuomi

Marine Research Unit Finnish Meteorological Institute, Helsinki, Finland

E-mail contact

Wind waves and wind wave modelling, ocean surface layer dynamics, new automated measurement techniques for the Baltic Sea (Argo floats, gliders)

Member since February 2020

Ralf Weisse

Institute of Coastal Research Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Germany

E-mail contact

Climate variability and modelling, in particular wind, wave and storm surge climate, and mean sea level changes

Member since March 2016

Sergey Zhuravlev

State Hydrological Institute (SHI) and St. Petersburg State University, Russia

E-mail contact

Hydrology, Hydrological engineering

Member since June 2013

Previous members

Baltic Earth Science Steering Group (BESSG)

Terms of Reference

BESSG Minutes

PostBALTEX Minutes