2020 Multiscale Plant Vascular Biology GRC/GRS, Newry, Maine, June 7-12,2020

2020年6月戈登研究会议（GRC）“多尺度植物维管生物学”集中在子主题“通过光学方法评估植物维管功能”。会议发言人将重点介绍目前正在应用的新型光学方法，这些方法从基因表达的角度，通过细胞、组织、整个植物、景观和全球水平来评估植物的获取和水的运动。这次会议汇集了来自植物用水的各种观点的研究人员，并允许通常不参加同一会议的研究人员之间进行互动。召集人将分享知识研究进展的前沿状态，与会者将了解资源（人员和想法），以推进自己的研究。在主要会议之前，将有一个戈登研究研讨会（GRS），旨在帮助早期职业科学家和学生发展专业网络并了解该领域的新科学发展。GRC和GRS都在推进一门科学，在全球快速变化的时代，这门科学对地球上所有生物以及社会和政治机构都具有基本重要性。地球上的所有生命都依赖植物以可用的形式固定太阳能，并调节影响人类福祉和生存的气候、水和碳循环。这些会议将促进对地球上的水和碳循环以及植物在其中的作用的深入思考。主要的GRC项目包括科学界代表性不足的群体的成员和来自不同职业水平的演讲者。在31位演讲者中，4位是副教授级别，7位是助理教授级别，4位是博士后级别。演讲者中有16位是女性。在非常大的环境变化范围内，维管植物必须在光合作用过程中补充叶子流失的水分，并为生长器官提供糖。植物通过维持木质部和韧皮部运输与气孔协调，利用一系列复杂的解剖特性、细胞过程和协调叶、茎和根的维管特征来实现这一目标。由于认识到植物水运的重要性，在过去几十年里加大了研究力度。研究水运的尺度之多，意味着研究人员聚集在不同的会议上；从而阻碍了专业领域之间的信息交换。考虑到这一点，本次会议汇集了从基因表达到全球范围内通量研究植物水力学的研究人员。本次会议的目的是：1)在维管植物生物学涵盖的各个领域和生物尺度上建立跨学科的互动；2)在所有职业阶段扩大未被充分代表的群体的参与。相对于整个领域而言，该会议在性别平衡和多样性方面有着良好的记录。会议的结构是为了鼓励互动和讨论。它的特点是讨论科学中的妇女问题，这是一个社会项目，并为初级和高级科学家提供配对的机会，目的是指导和建立专业联系。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The June 2020 Gordon Research Conference (GRC) “Multiscale Plant Vascular Biology” concentrates on the subtopic “Assessing Plant Vascular Function Through Optical Approaches.” Conference speakers will highlight novel optical approaches that are currently being deployed to assess plant acquisition and movement of water from the scale of gene expression through cellular, tissue, whole plant, landscape, and global levels. The conference draws together researchers from the full spectrum of perspectives on water use by plants and allows interaction between researchers who typically do not attend the same conferences. The conveners will share cutting-edge state of knowledge research advances and attendees will learn about resources (people and ideas) to advance their own research. Preceding the primary conference, there will be a Gordon Research seminar (GRS) aimed at early career scientists and students to help them develop professional networks and learn new scientific developments in the field. Both the GRC and GRS advance a science that is of basic importance to all organisms and social and political institutions on Earth in an era of rapid global change. All life on Earth depends on plants for fixing solar energy in a usable form, as well as for regulation of climate, water, and carbon cycles that affect human well-being and survival. The conferences will facilitate deep thought on the water and carbon cycles on Earth, and the roles of plants within them. The primary GRC program includes members of underrepresented groups in science and presenters from a range of career levels. Of the thirty-one speakers, four are at the associate professor rank, seven at the assistant professor rank, and four are postdoctoral associates. Sixteen of the speakers are women. Across an exceedingly large range of environmental variation, vascular plants must replace water lost from leaves during photosynthesis, and supply sugars to growing organs. Plants accomplish this by maintaining xylem and phloem transport in coordination with stomata using a complex array of anatomical properties, cell processes, and by coordinating vascular traits in leaves, stems and roots. The recognized importance of plant water transport has increased research efforts over the last several decades, and the multitude of scales over which transport can be studied means that researchers gather at separate conferences; thus impeding information exchange across specialty areas. With this in mind, this conference brings together researchers who examine plant hydraulics from gene expression through to global-scale fluxes. This conference aims to 1) forge interdisciplinary interactions across the range of fields and biological scales encompassed by vascular plant biology and 2) broaden participation of underrepresented groups at all career stages. The conference has a strong track record of gender balance and diversity relative to the field as a whole. The meeting is structured to encourage interaction and discussion. It features a discussion on women’s issues in science, a social program, and an opportunity for junior and senior scientists to pair up with the aim of mentoring and establishing professional contacts.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.