G-7 meeting at MagLab was business as usual for FSU | Opinion

Gary Ostrander

Your Turn

Every year, the news media focuses on the latest G-7 meeting and the political relationships on display. The G-7 summit pulls together the leaders of the seven largest economies in the world to discuss a myriad of issues affecting the international economic landscape.

But as you might suspect, the real work occurs in the months between the meetings.

This past week, Florida State was the venue for one of the key G7 committee meetings — the Group of Senior Officials on Global Research Infrastructures — with more than 30 individuals from 11 nations exploring international cooperation on global research infrastructures, enhancing collaborations and establishing best practices for the scientific community.

More:Florida State's MagLab is chosen venue for exclusive summit of G-7 science leaders

It was an honor for the university to host such an esteemed group of scientists and policymakers from around the world. The FSU-headquartered National High Magnetic Field Laboratory was selected as the meeting venue for this event due to its important role in supporting scientific endeavors and extensive level of international engagement.

FSU and the MagLab were pleased to be the venue for these important meetings because it was an opportunity to show off our world-class university and our cutting-edge research facilities.

That the U.S. should choose FSU and the MagLab as the venue isn’t really a surprise, though. It is exactly the type of high-level meeting or event that should — and does — occur on our campus and in our city.

Many people refer to FSU as a hidden jewel. They don’t grasp the scope and breadth of our research until they visit the campus.

The MagLab, which will receive $184 million over the next five years from the National Science Foundation, is just one example of the major scientific facilities at FSU.

FSU research routinely brings in more than $200 million from federal, state and local sources annually to fund our many research disciplines across our campus.

One such center is the Center for Advanced Power Systems or CAPS. CAPS received a $35-million award from the U.S. Navy in 2016 to help spur innovation and advance the Navy’s work to build an all-electric ship.

Another center is the High-Performance Materials Institute, which last year joined a multi-university project funded by NASA to develop technologies crucial to human exploration of deep space. In fact, we will be hosting that group on campus this week.

Then there’s the Florida Center for Reading Research, which is part of a $30 million project with Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to improve early childhood literacy.

FSU is full of award-winning researchers. The outstanding research they do propels our society forward, while also enriching the academic lives of our students and inspiring the next generation of scholars.

To serve as the venue for the G-7’s Group of Senior Officials on Global Research Infrastructures illustrates the unique role we play in the scientific community and all that we have to offer in the world of research.

We are grateful we had the opportunity to show off our campus to this international group of scientists and policymakers. We hope that by leveraging our robust research infrastructure and outstanding faculty, Florida State can continue to serve as an international leader in the advancement of science and research.

Gary Ostrander is the vice-president for research for Florida State University.

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